Unconditionally
by chocolatecheesecakes
Summary: There are a lot of words you could use to describe Selene Narcissa Malfoy. And stupid isn't one of them. Neither is predictable. But throw in a French friend, a few odd hexes and that little bit of prankster charm and maybe it'll be time for Frederick Weasley to realise that love is what they call unconditional.
1. Prologue: My Name Is Selene

**HI! This is my first update; enjoy guys!**

**Disclaimer: I never will own Harry Potter. *sobs***

**Updated as of 17****th**** June 2014.**

Prologue: My Name Is Selene

My name is Selene.

My surname doesn't matter, not at the moment anyway. If I told you, your smile would turn into a frown and you'd be gone before I could even mention my actual personality. They way people look at me in the street, equal measures of reverence and disgust; it has made me someone I'm not altogether proud with. I have friends, sure, but love has always avoided me.

I see loving families almost every day, and the way the parents smile at their kids almost breaks my heart. Because I can never have that. Not when your parents are too wrapped up in themselves to see how much they hurt their kids. As sad as it is, that is my life.

Wake up. Eat a low-calorie breakfast, Mother watching my every mouthful for an overly fatty gram. Go to the library. Stay there until lunch. If I'm lucky, my father might give me the opportunity to leave the house. If not, homework. Then maybe write to the friends my parents allow me to contact over the summers. Sleep.

I could live with it, if the same treatment wasn't extended to my brother. There is a degree of responsibility with younger siblings, and I would take the weight of the world for my brother. We are like chalk and cheese, he's snarky and I'm shy, but that doesn't mean I love him any less.

Love is not something I expect. My friends continue to surprise me with it however. Their parents are so reluctant to begin with, but they don't say out loud. If I wasn't so good at reading their eyes, then I wouldn't know. And they warm up, and now many of them seem like second parents.

Right now, I am sitting on my bed, my four-poster bed, in my massive bedroom in my massive house. Again, it doesn't matter where; if you're like me then you have already pieced two and two together and are now in the process of tearing this to shreds. If you're not like me, then I must apologise for the obscene amount of references I have undoubtedly made to things you will not understand. Sorry.

But, as I have said, that doesn't matter. What matter are my brother, the Quidditch World Cup I am packing for, and my lack of relationship experience.

Something feels like change. The electric feel of the atmosphere I am sitting in, the humid tones of the air, it all hints to something I can't quite place my finger on.

It's futile to hope that in my sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry I will find something else besides knowledge.


	2. Chapter 1: First Glimpse

**I forgot to do this the last chapter so…**

**Hello! I'm Eleanor! And I don't own Harry Potter. If I did the Fred wouldn't die, or Lupin or Tonks, or Madeye. Read and Review please! Criticism welcome (If constructive).**

Chapter 1: First Glimpse

"Straight up Arthur, two rights, two lefts and another right. As far as you can go. Great view from there, I'm told." The witch at the entrance to the Quidditch stands said, making hand gestures to illustrate the fact.

"Thank you Gladys. Come on, we'd better get going." Mr Weasley beckoned the group up the stairs.

Among the groups of people flooding up the staircase were the Weasley's and co. Led by Mr Weasley, a tall, balding man in his late forties, behind was Bill, the eldest of the people that followed, a guy with long red hair in a ponytail and a fang earring, that he'd magically dyed green for the occasion. Next was Percy, a pompous person sporting an Irish scarf and taking the opportunity to scold the girl behind him. Lily Tonks, one of the family friends was rolling her eyes at Percy's ministrations and resisting the urge to stab him with her Irish rosette. Harry Potter was next, trying not to fall over or into laughter, torn between focusing on Lily and Percy's argument and focusing on being sensible. Ron and Hermione Granger followed Harry, Hermione trying to calm Lily down with some of the shamrock cookies she'd bought, and Ron placing bets with the two identical kids behind them on who'd die first, Lily or Hermione. Fred and George were virtually identical; they'd yet to find a person able to tell them apart. Charlie was last, a scarred bloke with a warm smile and a furious temper if provoked. He'd been placed at the back to keep tabs on the prankster twins.

"Are we nearly there yet?" Lily called out jovially, attempting to deter Percy from whatever god-awful topic he was barking at her about now.

"We are Lily. Come on you lot, we're here!" Mr Weasley puffed, showing them a collection of wooden benches and seats at the very top of the stands. "Prime seats, these are!"

"How _ever_ did you get them Weasley? Did you sell your house?" Lucius Malfoy sneered, entering the top box behind the Weasley's. "Not that it'd fetch enough, but anyway. Ah! Minister!"

Mr Weasley mumbled something that sounded like "bastard" while Lucius Malfoy rushed to shake the Minister's hand. "Lovely to see you Lucius, as always. Is this your wife?"

The group turned around again to see a tall, beautiful woman with white-blonde hair enter the Box, followed by Draco, both wearing black. Draco sneered at the sight of the Weasleys. "Father, there's vermin here. Can we move?"

"Draco, please." A quieter, sweeter voice chastised kindly. At that moment, a tall girl with straight brown hair rounded the corner. She wore a ridiculously fancy black dress and her hair hung in a sheet, obscuring her face. "There's no need. You know what is obvious."

Lily rolled her eyes and perched on the edge of a seat. "Get a bloody grip guys, we can kick their arses later." She drawled, putting her legs up on the seat in front of hers. "Did anyone bring the popcorn? I bet six galleons that Lucius will die first."

"Ten." One of the twins immediately responded. "But on Dad killing him."

Draco groaned at having to stay in the same vicinity as a Blood Traitor family and flopped down in a seat, slouching as he did so. "God almighty, those people. That nerve. Speaking to a Malfoy like that." He whined to his sister, who shot him a sharp glance.

"Draco. Remember, polite society." She pressed, shuddering slightly. Ron raised an eyebrow at the casual euphuism.

"Girl." Lucius Malfoy glared at Draco's sister, who immediately walked over. "Minister, this is my daughter." He budged the girl slightly, almost pushing her over.

"It's lovely to meet you, sir." The girl greeted, curtsying clumsily. "My father has told me much about you."

"Ah! Yes, I remember you when you were just a small girl. Selena, isn't it?"

Before 'Selena' could answer, Ludo Bagman's magically enhanced voice rang out over the pitch.

"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! Welcome to the Quidditch World Cup!"


	3. Chapter 2: Lily the Trainee Vampire

**Hello again! Eleanor speaking!**

**Harry Potter: She doesn't own us.**

**Lily: She owns me! Idiot Potter-face.**

**Yes, yes, okay, shut up you two. I also own the girl from the last chapter, but that doesn't matter just yet. No prizes for guessing who she'll be…**

**Thank you for reading! And thank you to the lovely person who favourited and alerted; you've given me incentive! Thanks!**

**Read and review! PLEASE!**

Chapter 2: Lily the Trainee Vampire

"Victor! I love you! Victor! I do!" The twins teased, mimicking Ron's awe at the Bulgarian seeker. "When we're apart my heart beats only for you!"

"Shut up." Grumbled Ron, his ears turning pink. "Just cause you don't appreciate talent like I do doesn't give you licence to taunt me. Gits."

"Victor! I love you! Victor! I do!" The twins sung, this time joined by Lily.

"Oh, boys." Mr Weasley chastised carefully, still in high spirits after Ireland's significant victory. "Stop taunting your brother."

"Um… Mr Weasley? I'm not a boy." Lily pointed out, gesturing to her chest. "Unless all that muggle crap's gone to your head, it should be kinda obvious. I am definitely not a boy. And Ron is not by brother. If he was, I'd of gone psyco a long time before now."

"Liliana, you know what my father means." Percy lectured, glaring at his mad cousin (of sorts). "Just because-"

"Yes, yes, I know _Percival_" Lily mimicked, pulling a crazy face behind his back at the twins. "I'm a disgrace to the house of whatever, I can't control myself, I'm a psychopath. All of the above are true, but sorry, I don't give a fuck."

Percy reddened at this and muttered something unintelligible.

"Right!" Mr Weasley cut in, to avoid Percy's brains flying everywhere. "Time for bed. And that means you too Lily. No staying up, Vampire trainee or not."

"But Mr Weasley…" Lily and the twins whined in unison. "We're all hyped on sugar…"

"No buts." Mr Weasley pressed. "And if I even hear about you three painting the Bulgarian tents green, you twins will have to deal with your mother, and Lily, you'll have to deal with yours. Got that?"

Lots of grumbling followed this, but eventually all the group were in their respective tents, and sleeping.

Around three or so hours later, Harry re-awakened to faint screams and yells in the distance. He couldn't make out any discernible words or phrases, but whatever it was, the yellers didn't seem like My Little Pony.

"HARRY! RON! TWINS! OUT - NOW!" Mr Weasley yelled, causing Harry to jump slightly.

Harry grabbed his wand and tugged on a pair of trainers hastily. "Come on Ron, something's obviously wrong out there." He called to his still half-asleep friend.

"Lumos." Harry muttered, as a light emerged from the end of his wand. "Hermione? Ron? Lily? Fred? George? Ginny?" He called into the dark forest, feeling a sense of panic take over him. "Are you there?"

"Thank Merlin!" Ron barked sharply, shaking Harry out of his stupor. "Hermione's here. I haven't seen Fred, George, Ginny or Lily, I assume they're together."

"Poor guys." Harry bit his cheek, remembering the problems they would inevitably get with Lily in a dark wood at night. Short of jumping on people, trying to 'zombify' them, she was uncontrollable.

"Yeah, I know. Come on mate, we need to get going. We can't stay here." Ron pointed out darkly.

"Yes, come on Ronald, Harry." Hermione said briskly, brushing a few leaves off her clothes. "Let's see if we can find the others. They can't have gone far."

The trio set off through the forest, attempting to avoid tripping over loose twigs of fall into random piles of leaves. Apart from the light from their wands, the wood was in darkness. What made it all the more freaky was the faint light that they could see from the fires that still burnt at the campsite.

"OI!" Someone yelled, making Ron jump backwards into a pile of mud and leaves. "'Ouse elf! What are you doin' with 'at wand?"

**Hey again! Sorry it took me so long to put up; the internet at school went down over lesson two and hasn't come back as of yet. I put a time skip in this chapter to avoid fiddling around in non-important details – the real important stuff happens in the next few chapters. Cue the return of my other OC, who shall remain nameless… for now (Cue evil laughter!). Wow, two cues in one sentence, I'm tired. The next update may take a little longer due to me being unorganised, I'll try to write up to Chapter 5 by Tuesday, but I can't promise. I'm a little distracted with a one-shot (FredxOC) set in Book 6 which is VERY fluffy and also sets up some ideas for Book 7. I also have a good idea for later on in this story which I shall reveal later…**

**See ya, **

**Eleanor**


	4. Chapter 3: All Aboard The Express

**Hello! **

**I have a shout out to do; to cheeseandoreosHP (the possessor of the best name on Fanfiction) as my first reviewer! Thank you; you have empowered me (such a good word). Remember to check out her awesome story; The Weasley Twins and Me, which is my number 1 favourite story on here at the moment! Thank you to her!**

**I'm sorry about the weird skip thing last chapter, it skipped straight to the forest but it didn't show the time jump marker.**

**But, as always, I only live in the Potterverse, I don't own it. All credit goes to my god, JK Rowling!**

**And now, a word from my OC!**

**Lily: Fuck the hell off, I'm bust sucking Voldemort's blood, which will save the trio a whole lotta trouble. Psyche! Now fuck off.**

**Me: How nice. Ignore her; she's just annoyed because I took away her Rammstein CDs. She won't actually suck his blood. That's just antisocial. And it doesn't make a very good storyline.**

**The chapters get longer from here on, at least 1000 words each. I might do some smaller ones if the occasion calls.**

Chapter 3: All Aboard The Hogwarts Express

"Oh, for god's bloody sake guys, get a shift on!" Lily practically screeched, hauling her trolley with her trunk and her owl on it. Hades flapped his wings a little and made an annoyed sound at his owner, who glared at him. "Oh, look! You made Hades angry! Now he'll want chips. And I don't have any on me!"

"Calm down, calm down crazy vampire chick." George or Fred said, throwing his hands up in mock surrender. "You will be back among your own soon."

"It's easy for you to say, you don't have a schizophrenic bird to keep an eye on. And anyway, I'm not a vampire yet. I have to find one willing to bite me." Sighed Lily, keeping a beady eye on all the muggles that passed, making sure that none of them heard her weird conversation. That would probably send her to the nearest psychiatric ward.

"Come on Sel, we need to get out of here. The muggles are looking at us funny." Draco Malfoy complained, dragging a girl towards the barrier. "And you know Dad told you that-"

"Yes, I know Draco. But I did say that I would wait for Cho, remember?" The girl insisted, tugging hesitantly on her coat sleeve. "She wanted to go over the Quidditch team trials with me. She's been made Quidditch captain, isn't that great? I was really upset when she didn't become a prefect. I was sure she would, but I guess Professor Flitwick thought otherwise."

"But Sel, Dad made you promise that we'd go straight onto the platform, not stay in Kings Cross while you gawk at the muggle stuff everywhere. It's not interesting at all. It's pointless." Malfoy crossed his arms in a show of solidarity. "I don't understand why Mum won't let me walk onto the platform by myself."

Lily stopped suddenly to glare directly at Malfoy and the girl, causing Ron, Harry and Hermione to career into her. "So if it isn't little Draco Malfoy. Finally got a girlfriend? She's a little old for you, isn't she?"

Noticing Lily, Malfoy sneered at the gaggle of people behind her. "Liliana, you filthy half-blood. The mudblood, the ginger freak and the hero. Oh look, here comes the rest." He listed, pulling a smug grin. "Got scared at the world cup? Ran to mummy? Well, Potter doesn't have a mummy anymore now, does he?"

"I've told you before – DON'T CALL ME LILIANA!" Lily shrieked.

"Temper, temper." Malfoy grinned. "We all- OW! Watch it!"

The girl they assumed to be Draco's girlfriend yanked him sharply by the arm. "Draco, leave them alone." She shot a sympathetic smile at the group. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be." Harry replied with a withering glare. "I take it you're his sister?"

"Um… yeah." She blushed slightly. "Come on Draco, dad said not to linger too long on the muggle side."

"What the heck was that all about?" Ron asked, staring after Malfoy + Female Malfoy in disbelief. "Malfoy has a _sister_?"

"Yeah, she was at the World Cup, remember?" Hermione reminded from behind Ron. "The one you thought was emo?"

"Hey, was that-" One of the twins began.

"-Lucius Malfoy's daughter?" The other finished, the exact same look of disbelief on both of their faces.

"Yup." Ron agreed, accentuating the 'p'.

"Draco, I need to go to the prefect's carriage. I'll check up on you later." Selene patted her younger brother's shoulder and drew him into a hug. "Don't get into too much trouble."

"Stop fussing over me Sel." Draco insisted, but sneaking his elder sister a smile. "I'm almost 15, not 5."

"Yes, but I need to keep you safe." She half-smiled. "I need to go. Cho'll be waiting."

"Why do you have to hang around with that Mudblood girl?" Draco sneered as his sister began to walk away. "We're a pureblood family, we shouldn't be associating with the likes of _her_."

Selene stopped walking and sighed. "The pact? Does it still stand?"

"For now."

"Well, you know I don't care about that. I really must be going. I'll see you later Draco." Selene bit her lip and turned in the direction of the train, narrowly missing bumping into a boy.

"Watch where you're going, why don't you?" He complained, glaring at her. "You purebloods have no manners."

"I'm sorry." She muttered, sidestepping the boy gingerly, and continuing towards the train. He was probably either a Gryffindor or a Hufflepuff. Most Ravenclaws as a general rule either wouldn't recognise her or ignored her, and Slytherins knew her brother well enough to know not to mess with her. Actually, scratch that, that guy was most definitely a Slytherin.

"SEL!" Someone yelled from next to her. "HI!"

"Ouch Cho, not so loud." Selene winced at the volume, but nevertheless hugged her best friend. "How was China?"

"Hot. Boring. How was your holiday?" Cho giggled, reciprocating the hug. "See any cute boys at that ball your mother held?"

"Actually, my holiday was good, compared to last year. And you know I'm not looking for a boyfriend. Possibly ever. I'd have to find someone crazy enough to date a Malfoy. No, don't you dare push me in the direction of Flint. He is an idiot, and geeks can't date idiots." Selene pulled away, smiling. "I managed to sneak out though."

"Yay! Did you go anywhere interesting?" Cho asked, linking her arm in Selene's.

"Oh, just to the town. Brought another muggle CD. I think it's called 'Too Weird To Live, Too Young To Die'. But enough about me, I want to know what goes on the real world…"

**So, that last bit was from the point of view of Selene Malfoy, the kind of main character for this story. I won't say too much here, but she'll meet the other main characters VERY soon (well, she has already but properly – they don't yell at her) and the chapters will definitely get longer. Much longer. I'm going to start using dialogue from the actual fourth books and the whole story will follow it more closely now.**

**So, ALLONS-Y!**

**Eleanor **


	5. Chapter 4: The Triwizard Whaty?

**Well hello, mes amigos (I'm learning Spanish). Time for another chapter. Any questions? No? Good. Time to get on with the story then.**

**Thank you to Kacey for reviewing!**

**And enjoy! Review! The more reviews I get the faster I'll update!**

**I don't own Harry Potter. Sadly.**

Chapter 4: The Triwizard Whaty?

It was raining. Well, it's Britain, isn't it.

People were flooding (no pun intended) up the staircase that led into the school. "Blimey." Ron shook his head and sent water everywhere. "If that keeps up, the whole lake's going to overflow. I'm soak-ARGH!"

A large red water-filled balloon fell from the ceiling right onto Ron's head, soaking him again. A second one dropped as Ron, trying to avoid it, barrelled sideways into Harry and narrowly missed Hermione, instead hitting the ground at Harry's feet, sending a wave of cold water into his trainers.

"PEEVES!" Professor McGonagall, head of Gryffindor house and deputy headmistress skidded on the wet floor and grabbed Hermione around the neck to keep from falling over. "Ow… sorry, Miss Granger."

"That's okay Professor." Hermione massaged her neck where McGonagall had grabbed it.

"GET DOWN HERE NOW!" Yelled Professor McGonagall. "I'M WARNING YOU!" She straightened her glasses and glared.

"Not doing nothing!" Cackled Peeves, as he lobbed a water balloon onto a few Ravenclaw seventh years. "Already wet, aren't they?"

Sticking his tongue out, he threw the rest of his water balloons into the air and zoomed off up the Grand Staircase, cackling crazily.

"Move along, move along, into the Great Hall." McGonagall shepherded the gaggle of bedraggled people who were gawping at the poltergeist. "Come on!"

Harry, Ron and Hermione slipped and wobbled across the Entrance Hall, Ron muttering, pushing his sopping wet hair out of his face.

The trio walked past the Slytherins, the Hufflepuffs and the Ravenclaws, and sat down at the Gryffindor table, next to Nearly Headless Nick, the ghost of Gryffindor. "Good evening." He said pleasantly, beaming.

"Says who?" Harry groaned as a large amount of water rushed out of his upturned shoe. "Come on McGonagall, hurry up with the sorting, I'm starving."

Funnily enough, even though this was Harry's fourth year, it was his first sorting, not counting his own. And before you ask, the reason was not his fault. Well, a little. He and Ron _did_ choose to fly Mr Weasley's car into the Whomping Willow.

A brightly, highly excited voice piped up from down the table. "Hiya Harry!" Called 'Colin the Camera' (patented by Lily).

"Hi Colin." Harry looked at the third year groupie warily.

"Guess what?" Colin didn't wait for an answer. "My brother's starting! He's called Dennis! Do'ya think he'll be in Gryffindor?"

"I would guess." Harry said begrudgingly, judging by the seven Weasleys. "Brothers and sisters normally go in the same houses, don't they?"

"Not always. I mean, Parvati's twin Padma is in Ravenclaw, and they're twins." Hermione pointed out. "And they're identical, you'd think they'd be in same house, wouldn't you?"

"I guess." Harry conceded, turning back to the top table where McGonagall was listing the names of the first years. It seemed to take forever, or at least way too long for a huge hall full if hundereds of hungry people. Also, there seemed to be _way_ more Hufflepuffs this year than any other house.

"Damn, that is a LOT of Hufflepuffs." Lily groaned from next to Hermione, mirroring Harry's thoughts. She began to absent-midedly tap a fork on the table, wearing a glazed look on her face.

"Creevey, Dennis!" Professor McGonagall called out and a smaller version of Colin walked up to the stool, where the Sorting Hat was placed on his head.

"GRYFFINDOR!" Cried the Hat, and rapturous applause broke out from the Gryffindor table.

"Told you." Harry nudged Hermione, a hint of complacency in his voice.

After what seemed like a millennia, McGonagall rolled up the sheet of parchment and nodded to Professor Dumbledore. "Yes, thank you. Now, I sense that this is not the time for large speeches, but matters have come to my attention that must be adressed. Firstly, staff changes. Our Defense Against The Dark Arts teacher for this year will be Professor Alastor Moody."

Thunder cracked, making several first years jump as Lily clapped her hands in excitement. "Yay! The zombie apocalypse has begun!" She said loudly, freaking out lots of people; including Professor Flitwick who fell off his pile of cushions.

The double doors flew open, and the outline of a man was visable through the mist of panicking people. "I assure you Miss Tonks, the zombie apocalypse has _not _begun." Professor Dumbledore chuckled as the man clunked up the hall, his left leg making a strange thumping sound as he walked. His right eye was black, but the other was electric blue and it spun wildly as he walked towards the top table.

"Mad-Eye Moody?" George gaped. "Dad tells us all about him. He's an Auror – dark wizard catcher – the best they said. But her went a bit loopy, sees things everywhere. He was the one with the exploding dustbins that Dad went to help this morning."

"That's him?" Ron gasped but by then Dumbledore had resumed speaking.

"As I was saying, I have another announcement to make. Hogwarts shall be hosting the Triwizard Tournement this year."

"You're bloody JOKING!" Fred shouted, as a general hubbub of conversation erupted from around the hall.

"I assure you, I am not joking Mr Weasley. For those of you that do not know, the Triwizard Tournement is a chance for representatives from each of the three main wizarding schools in Europe to come together to participate in an inter-house championship. For that same reason, the inter-house Quidditch championship will not d place this year."

"WHAT?" Wood cried loudly, which was echoed by various Quidditch chasers, beaters, keepers and seekers around the room.

"Yes, yes, I know. Anyway, the other two schools that will be competing are Durmstarng and Beauxbatons."

A loud squeal came from the table next to the Gryffindors, the Ravenclaws. Harry couldn't catch the maker of the noise though, and Dumbledore continued as if the noise never happened. "These two schools shall be arriving on Halloween. The prize shall be eternal glory and a thousand Galleons prize money."

"I'm going for it." Fred grinned, nudging his twin. "Imagine that… a thousand Galleons of pranking equipment…"

"This tournament was first established some seven hundred years ago, but due to the large amounts of casualties that it amounted to then, we have installed some safety precautions. To begin with, Bartemius Crouch, the head of the Department of International Magical Co-Operation, shall be spending liberal amounts of time here to insure that only the highest level of safety is kept. Secondly, only those of age, that is to say at least seventeen, may enter. Now, I understand your anger-" For the twins and most of the other people in the hall were now silently furious. "-but this is a measure that we feel is necessary due to the Tournement tasks being highly dangerous and difficult. I shall personally be ensuring that no underage student hoodwinks our impartial judge, so I beg you not to waste your time submitting yourself if you're under seventeen. Now, I understand you are all very hungry, so I only have to more words to say. Tuck. In!"

After everyone had finished, the houses were sent back to their respective common rooms. "I'm annoyed." Ron grumbled, expertly hopping the trick step on the way up to Gryffindor table. "A Thousand Galleons. Imagine that 'Mione. A Thousand Galleons…"

"Shut up Ronald. Anyway, Dumbledore said _he _was personally going to make sure that no one underage can enter the Tournement. There is no point in trying to hoodwink the impartial judge into letting you enter. It WON'T WORK!"

"Oh, ye of little faith." George crept up behind them. "I can assure you, the Weasley gods shall prevail."

"Weasley gods?" Harry raised his eyebrows.

"Yes. You see–"

"-We judged that as– "

"-Two supremely talented wizards and-"

"-A pair of AMAZING pranksters-"

"-We decided to make-"

"-A group of first years-"

"-The first members of our cult." The twins finished each others sentances, sharing identical grins. "Now excuse us I see Professor McGonagall-"

"We must FLEE!" George finished, expertly disappearing into the crowd.

**Ah! Three days worth of writing! I must be bonkers! Well, I am. **

**I'm sorry this took so long to update, but I'm only human-ish and I do have other pastimes beside writing fanfiction. Anyway, I'm planning to write Chapter 5 tomorrow and have a update then too to make up for my crappy productiveness. But after that there will be a little slump due to me going to see Charlie And The Chocolate Factory with school on Wednesday! (I can't wait!) But I'll try to get Chapter 6 and 7 up by Friday. **

**But in the meantime… *throws virtual chocolate everywhere* CHOCOLATE TIME! It solves everything, including writers block (which I have in abundance lately).**

**Anyvay… (Please say you read that in a German accent)**

**GERONIMO! (Jumps into a pool full of Skittles)**

**Eleanor the CastOver Kid!**


	6. Chapter 5: The Guy With The Mad Eye

**Hello, fellow humans! I come in peace! I mean you no harm!**

**Seriously though, where are all the reviews? Did they die at the hands of Shakespeare? Where art thou reviews? I totally understand if it's a little boring, but it has to crawl there, it can't jump. You must write your vegetables before you can write the dessert. So I promise you, it will be worth the wait. And if my writing ideas are any indication, it won't be much longer at all. So REVIEW! And maybe I shall post a funny little one-shot as your reward for being loyal and Hufflepuff-esque…**

**And for the Guest who reviewed last chapter, I give you my unavowing loyalty that there will be a birthday one-shot for a character in the next few days… **

**This chapter is where it all starts to begin…**

Chapter 5: The Guy With The Mad Eye

Thankfully, the storm had blown out by the following morning, and a façade of calm had settled over the students as they examined their various timetables, groaning over the boring and slightly strange assortment of subjects they had.

"Today's not too bad; we're outside all morning…" Ron commented, running his finger down the first column of his timetable. "Herbology with the Hufflepuffs, and Care Of Magical Creatures. Damn it, we're still with the Slytherins."

"You think you've got it bad? I've got double Potions with Snapey Snape followed by bloody Divination with Trelawney." Lily complained, waving her sheet of parchment in front of the boys. "Calm down. It's worse for me."

"We've got double Divination after lunch Lily, I can't and I won't calm down." Harry pointed out grimly. "What do you have after?"

"Who cares?" Lily rolled her eyes and said in a stunning impression of Professor McGonagall: "It will be your OWLs in a matter of months and you _must_ not slack off. That includes you Miss Tonks."

"You have to tell me how you do that." George exclaimed, abandoning his conversation with Fred and Lee about how to hoodwink the impartial judge into letting them enter the Tournament. "Come on Lily. Think of all the pranks I could pull if I could imitate the Head of Gryffindor? All the mayhem we could cause."

"I'm not telling." Lily grinned evilly, slyly winking at George.

Harry and Ron took this opportunity to leave before things got messy, and started walking towards Greenhouse 3, avoiding the slugs and snails that had popped out to say hello after last night's gale. Inside the Greenhouse was possibly the ugliest plants Harry had ever had the misfortune to see.

"Bubotubers! They need squeezing. You will collect the pus-"Professor Sprout began briskly.

"The _what_?" Seamus shuddered, looking disgusted.

"Pus, Finnigan, pus." Repeated Professor Sprout. "And it's extremely, extremely valuable. Don't waste it. Wear your gloves; it does disastrous things to your skin when undiluted."

Selene tapped her pen on the desk, absent-mindedly humming a muggle song that had been stuck in her head for a few days.

The sixth year Ravenclaws had Defence against the Dark Arts with the Gryffindors this year, and that wasn't ever very pleasant for either party. The Gryffindors generally were outshone by the Ravenclaws, but the Ravenclaws were hardly given a second glance when the Gryffindors were around.

The door swung open suddenly, and Selene automatically sat up straighter. Professor Moody stomped into the room, making a muttered apology about his lateness. "I will be teaching you Defence against the Dark Arts this year. I take it you're Ravenclaw-"He gestured to the left segment of the room. "-And you're Gryffindor." He gestured to the other half. "In my classes, I encourage mixing people up. So."

Professor Moody took up his register and began to quickly pair Ravenclaws and Gryffindors together. "Miss Chang? You'll be next to Mr Jordan. Mr Belby, you'll be with Miss Johnson. Ah! Miss Malfoy." He looked straight at Selene, even though she hadn't had time to raise her hand. "You'll be next to Mr Weasley."

"Which one?" The twins piped up simultaneously, wearing identical grins.

"George Weasley." Professor Moody eyed them both for a second, before one of them stood up and reluctantly sat down next to Selene. "Good. Miss Fawcett, the other Mr Weasley. Miss Edgecombe…"

Selene avoided looking at George beside her and instead focused her attention on re-reading the piece of extra-credit she'd done over the summer. "Ummmm… hi." She volunteered after a bit of an awkward silence.

"Hi." George responded, mistrust evident in his voice. "I thought the sister of the slimiest Slytherin git in fourth year would be in Slytherin, not Ravenclaw."

"Well, maybe the sister actually has a decent list of OWL results to work from this year." Selene retorted, still checking the essay for spelling and punctuation errors.

To her surprise, George chuckled. "Yeah. Sorry, I'm George Weasley. One half of the enigmatic Gryffindor pranking duo. Pleased to meet you."

Blinking rapidly, Selene took in the news that she'd actually made her first friend outside of Ravenclaw for the first time in three years. She looked up at the red-haired guy smirking at her and hazarded a smile. "I'm Selene Malfoy. Geek of Ravenclaw. Pleased to meet you George Weasley."

They shook hands, as Professor Moody began the lesson. "Now that's sorted, we can continue. I've had a letter from Professor Lupin, who says that you've been examined in various magical techniques, both practically and theoretically. But you still lack the premise needed in proper Dark Arts. We shall be starting non-verbal spells next week, but we need to cover this first. Who can name one of the Unforgivable Curses?"

Selene's blood ran cold. She knew all of them. Any respectable anti-mudblood family tutored their children in them at age one. God, she'd seen her father use them. But she took a step out of her tradition, and put her hand up. "Yes- Miss Malfoy?"

"The… the Cruciatus Curse." She murmured.

Professor Moody looked at her with both eyes, like he was properly noticing her for the first time. "Yes, you'd know an awful lot about that one Miss Malfoy. I don't suppose… anyway. Yes, the Cruciatus Curse. The torturing curse."

Resolutely keeping her eyes away from anyone in the room, Selene balled her hands into fists as Professor Moody took a spider from his desk. "Nasty one this one. No need for thumbscrews or hammers when you know how to perform this curse. Needs to be bigger so you can get the idea. Engorgio!"

Professor Moody pointed his wand at the now horrifically huge spider. "Crucio!"

The spider curled up in a tight ball and everyone in the room recoiled. As Professor Moody relaxed his grip, the spider collapsed in a pile of legs. "If it was a person, it'd be screaming. Anyone else know one?"

"Hey, you okay?" George poked his new-found friend carefully. "Selene…?"

"Huh? Oh, yes. I'm fine. Um… you?" She asked him, glancing out of the window quickly. "It's a bit too cold for September. About 0.3 recurring degrees too cold to be exact. Is it global warming?" She rattled off.

George gave her a concerned look. "_What?_"

"Global warming. It's a scientifically proven fact that our world had gotten warmer over the last century."

"No, what the hell are you talking about? 0.3 whatever degrees too cold? Who notices that?"

The lesson finished and Fred raised his eyebrows at the friendly goodbye his twin gave the Malfoy girl. "I was about to say poor you but it seems you're halfway to pureblood-dom yourself." He quipped.

"She's not too bad. She's a little bit…" George rotated his index finger around his ear. "Strange but she's a whole lot nicer than her brother."

"Moody was bloody awesome." Fred shrugged of his twin's comments, putting it down to overwork and lack of humour. "I mean, not even Lupin could hold a torch to that lesson."

"I know. I feel sorry for the poor midgets though. They'll get seriously freaked out. CONSTANT VIGILANCE! And all that."

"How was Moody?" Ron asked his brothers as they entered the great hall.

"Never had a lesson like it." Said Fred.

"He _knows."_ George insinuated.

"Knows what?" Ron asked, leaning forwards.

"Knows what it's like to be out there _doing it._" Said George impressively.

Lily entered the conversation at that point, to everyone's embarrassment. "Er, guys? I'd be more careful about how you say things like that. And definitely don't stress the words '_doing it_'. Ever."

**Thank you!**

**Eleanor the CastOver Kid!**

**P.S. Look out for the one-shot in the next few days, hopefully on Sunday…**


	7. Chapter 6: I Prefer To Puke Then SPEW

**HI!**

**Sorry about that but I'm really hyper! On a song though, not Lucozade (thank God). **

**I'm sorry I put this story aside. I'm so sorry! *starts to cry manically***

**Thank you to Guest who also reviewed, and I'm sorry if I'm updating strangely but it's only so I don't let any of you who read this down!**

**Right, now that's over with, I don't and never will own Harry Potter!**

Chapter 6: I Prefer To Puke Then S.P.E.W.

"Er, is this the new stand on elf rights?" Asked Ron. "Make yourself barf instead?"

"No." Hermione garbled, with as much dignity as you could have with a mouth full of cabbage. "I just need to go to the library."

"_What the-?_" Ron gasped in disbelief. "You haven't even got homework yet Hermione!"

She shrugged and continued to shovel carrots down her throat like she hadn't eaten in months. "You can never be too careful Ronald."

And with that, she hurtled to her feet and grabbed her bag, before hastily uttering "Bye!" and scurrying off in the general direction of the library, almost mowing down Lily in the process.

"Hermione the lawnmower?" Lily raised an eyebrow and plonked herself down in Hermione's evacuated seat. "Ron, a lawnmower cuts grass. If your Dad was muggleborn you'd know that too so stop glaring at me like I just ate your Aunt."

"I wish you would eat my aunt." Ron muttered, stabbing a non-offending piece of broccoli savagely. "She's a right bit-"

"Careful Ronnie-" One of the twins cut in.

"-Or we might just-"

"-Tell your mother." They finished together, apparently accustomed to these strange broken up phrases they spoke so often.

"Go die in a hole." Ron grumbled, shoving the broccoli in his mouth stubbornly.

The twins mimicked his voice but thankfully left the vicinity before mashed potato went flying at the hands of an angry fourth year and a fifth year that relished any opportunity for a good food fight.

"Hey – wait." Harry suddenly thought as they were making their way up toward the Gryffindor common room later that night. "Wouldn't Moody and Dumbledore be in trouble with the Ministry if they knew we'd seen the Unforgivable curses?"

"I guess." Ron admitted. "But Dumbledore's always done things his way and Moody's a bit 'attack first, ask later'. Take the dustbins for example. Balderdash." He spoke to the Fat Lady who promptly swung forward to reveal the entrance hole.

The duo climbed into the Gryffindor common room, which was, as usual, crowded and noisy. "Divination stuff?" Harry asked with an audible sigh.

"I s'pose." Ron groaned, and the they went up to the dormitory to fetch their books and charts.

Neville was sitting on his bed, looking a great deal calmer than he was after the DADA lesson, although his eyes were tinged scarlet. "Hi Harry, Ron. Look what Professor Moody gave me." He held up the book – _Magical Mediterranean Water-Plants and Their Properties_. "Apparently Professor Sprout told Professor Moody that I'm really good at Herbology."

Harry and Ron grabbed their copies of _Unfogging The Future_ and took them and their star charts down to the common room and tried to make some kind of sense out of the mess that they'd created earlier that day. An hour later, they had made no kind of progress, though their table was littered with parchment bearing sums and symbols and even strange doodles of Snape becoming a Ballerina, although Harry was trying to get _those _mental images out of his fragile mind.

"I haven't got a clue what this is supposed to mean." He complained, staring down at a long list of complicated calculations.

"You know." Ron said thoughtfully, his red hair on end due to the number of times he'd ran his fingers through it in frustration. "I think it's back to the old standby."

"Make it up?"

"Yeah." Ron swept the notes and doodles off the table and scattered them onto the floor. He dipped his pen into some in and began to write.

"On Monday," He read aloud, scribbling as he did. "I am likely to develop a cough, owing to the unlucky conjunction of Mars and Jupiter." He looked up. "Come on mate, I can't do this by myself!"

"Right. On Monday, I'll be in danger of burns." He blindly improvised. "Actually I will be in danger of burns, we've got the Skrewts again on Monday."

"On Tuesday, I shall discover a secret I'd rather not know." Ron jotted. "Why don't you get stabbed in the back by someone you thought was a friend?"

"Good idea." Harry wrote it down. "Because… erm… Venus is in the third house."

"On Wednesday, I'll lose a finger." Ron said tragically.

"Oh, I wanted to lose a limb. I know! I'll…"

They continued to make up accidents, deaths and sorrows for another hour, steadily becoming more and more tragic. The common room around them slowly began to empty until it was just them and the twins, closeted in a corner.

They were sitting, quills out and heads together, writing something on a piece of parchment. It was unusual for Fred and George to be hidden in a corner; they usually liked to be in the thick of things and the noisy centre of attention. There was something secretive about the way they pored over the paper, and it wasn't a Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes order form, they would of let Lee in on the joke.

Within the next few minutes, the twins rolled up their parchment, said goodnight and went off to bed.

"Hello!" Hermione greeted. "I'm finished!"

"So am I!" Ron crowed, throwing down his pen triumphantly. "What's in the box 'Mione?"

"Funny you should ask." Hermione shot a dirty look at the clean room around them and lifted the lid.

Inside were around fifty badges, all different colours but all bearing the initials S.P.E.W.

"Spew?" Harry gaped, picking up a badge and examining it carefully. "What's this about?"

"Not 'Spew', S.P.E.W.!" Hermione exclaimed hotly. "It stands for the Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare."

"Never heard of it." Ron said.

"Of course you haven't. I've only just started it." Hermione said briskly.

"Yeah?" Said Ron in mild surprise. "How many members have you got?"

"Well, if you two join, four." Hermione admitted.

"Who's the other one?" Harry asked keenly. He'd never met anyone as crazy or as clever as Hermione.

"Oh, a Ravenclaw girl who always seems to be in the Library. She's really nice, but not many people talk to her. She's helped me out with Charms and Transfiguration once or twice. She joined because of her family's ex-house elf or something."

"HEY – SHE HELPED YOU WITH CHARMS?" Ron pretended to faint. "She's better than you then?"

"Well, she'd older." Hermione reasoned, but her face flushed slightly. "But yes, I've talked to Professor Flitwick about her and she'd the best student he's ever had."

"Hermione's not the best in the school at Charms!" Ron teased. "She's been out-conked by someone else!"

"Shut up Ron." Harry rolled his eyes. "So, Hermione, you want us to join?"

"Yes. Harry, you'll be secretary, and Ron you're treasurer. There's a collecting tin upstairs for you Ron, and you might want to record everything I'm saying now, as a record of our first meeting."

There was a short pause, but it was ultimately broken by a snowy owl tapping on the window.

"Hedwig!" Harry shouted, and launched himself out of his chair to open the window. "She's got an answer!"

"About time!" Ron said excitedly, grabbing Harry and pushing him onto the sofa. "What does it say?"

_Harry – _

_I'm flying north right now. This news about your scar is the latest in a series of strange rumours that have reached me. If it hurts again, go straight to Dumbledore. If what they're saying about how Mad-Eye's out of retirement, then Dumbledore's reading the signs, if no one else is._

_I'll be in touch soon, my best to Ron and Hermione. Keep your eyes open, and keep an eye on Malfoy._

_Sirius._

"He's flying north?" Hermione exclaimed in a hoarse whisper. "He's coming back?"

"Dumbledore's reading what signs?" Ron said, looking perplexed. "Harry – what's up?"

"The sky." Harry said dryly, but explained the reason for his facepalm. "I shouldn't of told him!"

"What are you on about?" Ron asked in surprise.

"It's made him think he's got to come back!" Said Harry, slamming his fist onto the table. "Coming back, because he thinks that I'm in trouble! And there's nothing wrong with me! And I haven't got anything for you." Harry snapped at Hedwig. "You'll have to go up to the Owlery if you want food."

**Hello again!**

**I don't feel so bad now, because I've written a new chapter and I've got the next one lingering at the back of my mind now too! No writers block for me!**

**Anyway, that was a bit of a transition chapter, the next one features everything you've been waiting for! Eg. More information on my OC Selene and weirdness galore!**

**Until then, have a nice day! (Like in the Stereophonics Song)**


	8. Chapter 7: Old Friends, New Ideas

**Well, hello!**

**I'm not going to say much here because my brain wants to get on with this new chapter. Big cheers though; I've just passed 600 views! Yay for me!**

**Thank you to BecauseImClever12 for her useful review - yes, I understand completely what you mean, that's maybe my greatest weakness. I'm really pleased you like it though and I've tried to make this chapter my own.**

**As always, I don't own Harry Potter, I only own Lily, Selene and now Leanne.**

Chapter 7: Old Friends, New Ideas

"But that's a _lie_ Harry!" Hermione protested sharply over breakfast. "You didn't imagine your scar hurting and you know it."

"So what?" Harry speared a piece of bacon. "He's not going back to Azkaban because of me."

"Drop it." Ron commanded Hermione as she went to open her mouth again, and for once she fell silent. "Thanks 'Mione. We'd better get going Harry, Moody'll go beserk if we're late for Defence Against the Dark Arts."

There lessons were quickly becoming more difficult and demanding than ever before, especially Defence Against the Dark Arts. To the class's surprise, Professor Moody had announced that he would be putting the Imperius curse on them each in turn, to demonstrate it's power and to see if anyone could resist it's effects.

"You said it was illegal Professor." Hermione said uncertainly, as Moody cleared away the desks with a sweep of his wand. "You said – to use it against another human being was –"

"Dumbledore wants you to be taught what it feels like. If you'd rather learn the hard way – when someone's putting it on you so they can control you completely – fine by me. You're excused. Off you go."

As Moody pointed one gnarled finger towards the door, Hermione turned beetroot red and muttered something about not meaning that she wanted to leave, she was only making sure.

Moody began to beckon students forwards in turn and put the curse upon them. Harry watched as his classmates did the most extraordinary things under it's influence. Dean Thomas hopped three times around the room, singing 'What Makes You Beautiful'. Lavender Brown imitated a badger. Neville did a triple backflip that he would most definitely not have been able to do on his own. Not one of them could fight the curse off, and they each only recovered when Moody lifted the curse.

"Potter." Moody barked. "You next."

Harry moved forward into the middle of the classroom, and was only vaguely aware of Moody raising his wand at him. "Imperio."

A blissful sensation overtook Harry, and he felt a floating sensation, as if he was floating in water. Every independent thought ceased to exist, it was only him and the feeling as if he would do anything Moody asked him to do.

"Jump onto the desk."

When they arrived in the Entrance Hall after a Care Of Magical Creatures Lesson later that week, they found themselves unable to proceed up the stairs owing to the large crowd of students gathered around a large sign that had appeared at the foot of the large marble staircase.

TRIWIZARD TOURNAMENT

_The delegations from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving at 6 O'Clock on Friday 30__th__ October. Lessons will end half an hour early._

_ Students will return their bags and books to their dormitories and assemble in front of the castle to greet our guests before the Welcoming Feast._

"Only a week away!" Ernie Macmillan of Hufflepuff said, emerging from the crowd. "I wonder if Cedric knows? Think I'll go and tell him."

"Cedric?" Ron asked blankly.

"Diggory." Harry supplied. "He must be entering the Tournament."

"That idiot - Hogwarts champion?" sked Ron incredulously, as they pushed their way through the chattering crowd. "Better than a Slytherin, I suppose."

When they went down for breakfast on the morning of the 30th October, they found that the Great Hall had been decorated overnight. Enormous silk banners hung from the walls, each representing a Hogwarts house – red with a gold lion for Gryffindor, blue with a bronze eagle for Ravenclaw, yellow with a black badger for Hufflepuff and green with a silver serpent for Slytherin. Behind the teachers' table was the biggest banner of all, depicting the Hogwarts coat of arms, lion, eagle, badger and snake united all around a large letter 'H'.

Harry, Ron and Hermione spotted Fred and George at the Gryffindor table, again most unusually sitting apart from everyone else and conversing in low voices. Ron led the way over to them.

"It's a bummer all right." George was saying gloomily to Fred. "But if he won't talk to us in person, we'll have to send it to him. Or we'll stuff it into his hand."

"What's a bummer?" Ron asked George.

"Having a nosy git like you for a brother." Fred supplied, looking irritated at the interruption.

"You two got any more ideas on the Triwizard Tournament yet?" Harry asked. "Thought any more about how you're going to enter?"

"I asked McGonagall how the champions are chosen but she wasn't telling." Said George bitterly. "She just told me to shut up and get on with Transfiguring my raccoon."

"Wonder what the tasks are going to be?" Ron pondered thoughtfully.

Before Ron's question could be answered, Hedwig swooped down and deposited a letter in front of Harry. Quickly checking that Fred and George were safely immersed in further discussions about the Triwizard Tournament, he offered Hedwig his bacon rinds and read the letter aloud in a whisper to Ron and Hermione.

_Nice try, Harry,_

_ I'm back in the country and well hidden. I want you to keep me posted on everything that's going on at Hogwarts. Don't use Hedwig, keep changing owls, and don't worry about me, just watch out for yourself. Don't forget what I said about your scar._

_ Sirius._

"Why'd you have to keep changing owls?" Ron asked in low voice.

"Hedwig'll attract too much attention. They aren't exactly native." Hermione said at once.

When the bell rang early, Harry, Ron and Hermione hurried up to Gryffindor Tower, deposited their bags and books as they had been instructed, pulled on their cloaks and rushed back downstairs into the Entrance Hall.

The Heads of houses were ordering their students into lines. "Follow me please." Said Professor McGonagall. "First years in front… no pushing…"

They filed down the front steps and lined up in front of the castle. It was a cold, clear evening; dusk was falling and a pale, transparent-looking moon was already shining over the Forbidden Forest. Harry, standing between Ron and Hermione in the fourth row from the front, saw Dennis Creevey positively shivering with anticipation along with the other first years.

"_There!_" Yelled a sixth year, pointing over the forest.

Something large, much larger than a broomstick was hurtling across the deep blue sky toward the castle, growing larger all the time.

As the gigantic black shape skimmed over the treetops of the Forest, the lights shining from the castle hit it, revealing a gigantic powder blue horse-drawn carriage, the size of a large house. It soared towards them, pulled by a dozen palomino winged horses, each the size of an elephant.

The front three rows of students drew backwards as the carriage hurtled ever lower, coming in in to land at a tremendous speed before crashing down.

A boy in pale blue robes sprang forward and opened the doors to the coach, and the most gigantic woman Harry had ever seen emerged, followed by a dozen girls and boys, all in their late teens.

One of the prettier girls, a tall blonde haired beauty gasped slightly as she looked over towards the Ravenclaws, and nudged her friend, a black haired girl.

"Selene!" They exclaimed in tandem, rushing over towards the Ravenclaw group, as their Headmistress made no attempt to stop them.

One of the Ravenclaw sixth year girls struggled through the crowd with a huge grin on her face. In facet, now Harry thought about it, that was Malfoy's sister. What was she doing?

"Leanne! Fleur!" She smiled, hugging the two French girls, before speaking to them excitedly in French.

"What the-?" Ron raised an eyebrow. "How does Malfoy senior know those extraordinarily beautiful French girls?"

"Never mind them, she knows _all _of them!" Hermione pointed out the masses of people gathered around Malfoy's sister, all sounding happy. "And I wonder why she knows French so well…"

"Well, she can set me up with the blonde one." Ron said smugly. "It's always useful having inter-continental relations. Ow, 'Mione…" Rubbing the spot on his arm where Hermione had punched him, Ron glared at her.

"Last month you were all 'Oh my god she's Malfoy's sister I'm never going to talk to her' and now, after you find out her friends are pretty you instantly think 'Yay! Now she can hook me up!' Honestly Ronald."

"Oh. My. God." Ron whispered, totally ignoring Hermione.

"What is it now?"

"It's Krum." Ron spoke in a hushed whisper, like the very mention of his name was sacred. "It's Viktor bloody Krum!"

"What? Where?" Harry looked around for a glimpse of the famous Quidditch player. "He's at Durmstrang? He's still in school?"

"Evidently." Hermione scoffed. "You can't like someone just because they're famous Ronald."

"You can talk." Ron grumbled, standing on his tiptoes to see over a tall third year. "Come on, move out of the way, I can't see!"

Eventually, the houses were cleared to go back inside to the Great Hall. Ron predictably spent the short walk trying to spot Viktor Krum amongst the large crowds of Durmstrang pupils. After he gave up on that, he spent the little while before the students arrived in the hall trying to make his hair less messy so he'd make a good impression with the French girls.

Finally, the Beauxbatons students swanned into the hall gracefully and daintily, glancing around for a few moments before following the blonde girl to the Ravenclaw table. They were shortly joined by Durmstrang, who took seats with Slytherin, much to Ron's disappointment.

"The Tournament will be officially opened at the end of the feast." Dumbledore called out to sea of students. "I now invite you all to eat, drink and make friends that'll last a lifetime."

He sat down and instantly the numerous noise of people clattering forks against bowls and plates filled the Great Hall. Instead of just familiar English dishes, there were French and Scandinavian dishes too. Ron just happened to be placed in front of a plate full of seafood stew, and recoiled at its fishy smell.

"What the heck is _that?_" Ron asked, pointing to the dish.

"Bouillabaisse." Hermione explained. "I had it on holiday, summer before last. Go on, try some."

Ron hastily shook his head and instead turned to something he was more familiar with; Lasagne. "You never know Hermione, there might be a Skrewt in there. I don't want to take my chances."

"Excuse me? Are you wanting ze bouillabaisse?" A voice said from behind them. It was the French girl that knew Malfoy's sister. Now she was inside, Harry could see the long, silvery blonde sheet of hair that hung to her waist and her deep blue eyes. Ron blushed bright red and pushed the dish towards her, muttering something unintelligible.

"Um, sorry." Hermione cut in. "How do you know that girl?" She gestured over to where Malfoy's sister was chatting to Cho Chang and a French boy.

The French girls face lit up slightly and smiled kindly at Hermione, making Ron turn red again. "We are good friends, no? She is lovely girl, I know her from Beauxbatons. You know her too?"

"Um… kind of." Harry hazarded.

The French girl positively beamed. "'Arry Potter, no? Selene doesn't talk about you in 'er letters. Excuse me, I must go and ask 'er."

The girl walked off towards the Ravenclaws, and Ron regained his use of speech. "Wow."

Hermione rolled her eyes and went back to her stew. "Ronald, you know very well that she won't so much as look at you."

"Yes – but George sits next to Malfoy's sister in Defence Against the Dark Arts! He can get her to put in a good word for me!" Ron plotted, sounding more and more excited by the millisecond.

"You might want to start by calling her Selene." Hermione recommended. "You won't get anywhere by referring to her as Malfoy's sister or Malfoy senior."

"And you, my dear brother, are deluded." George cut in. "If you want Selene to get that hot French girl to go out with you, you'll have to ask her yourself."

"No way." Ron blanched. "I'm not talking to Malfoy's sister."

"She's really nice." Hermione protested. "She's very quiet, always in the library before lessons and after dinner, helps me out with Charms and Arithmancy if I'm stuck, she was the one that joined S.P.E.W. and actually _wears her badge_!" Hermione ended with thinly veiled venom at Harry and Ron's reluctance to wear the brightly coloured badges. "She doesn't bite, really. But you have to talk to her, she's a bit shy."

"You sound like you're giving me instructions on how to talk to cats." Ron grumbled.

**Hello!**

**Yes, this is ready to post! Yay! I'm not rubbish at writing after all! **

**You know, having music on while writing helps if you're like me. I've made a huge playlist with the Killers, Panic! At The Disco, Good Charlotte, 30 Seconds To Mars, Fall Out Boy and U2 on (amongst others) and it's really helping me write.**

**Now, down to the beeswax. I can't draw, sadly. So I need some help with pictures of what Lily, Selene and possibly Leanne (The French girl with Fleur) look like. Oh, Leanne's the one with the black hair. If you need any help in their basic looks eg. Hair colour, eye colour, etc. then…**

**Lily: Red Hair, Green Eyes, About 5'4"**

**Selene: Brown Hair, Blue Eyes, About 5'8"**

**Leanne: Black Hair, Green Eyes, About 5'1"**

**Thanks, I really need help on this front. **

**TTFN!**

**Eleanor xxx**


	9. Chapter 8: The Extra Champion

**Hip hip hello!**

**A huge thanks to Kacey – I don't mind that you haven't reviewed lately, it's still nice getting regular reviews!**

**Also to BecauseImClever12 – I'm glad you liked what I added. Lily is the younger sister (by six years, Lily is in her fifth year at Hogwarts) of Nymphadora, and it isn't a coincidence that she looks like Lily Evans/Potter. I've decided that Andromeda Tonks was in the Order of the Phoenix along with James and Lily Potter, at least until Lily was born. Lily isn't a Metamophagus (did I spell that right?) like Tonks but she was born with and has the same shade of red hair as Lily Evans/Potter. Andromeda named her after Lily due to this, but the longer version is Liliana rather than the Lilian everyone says is long for Lily Evans/Potter's first name.**

**Anyway, thank you to everyone who favourite/followed, and remember to press that button at the bottom of this page!**

**I don't own Harry bloody Potter, okay? (God this is getting tedious…)**

Chapter 8: The Extra Champion

"Right, this is it." Ron squared his shoulders and looked right across to the Ravenclaw table. "I'm going to ask her."

"Hey, Ron?" Harry was struck with a sudden idea. "Can you ask if she's friends with Cho?"

"Yeah, mate." Ron winked suggestively at Harry, who blushed crimson and avoided Hermione's eagle-eyed gaze. "You're pretty obvious. Staring all day at the Ravenclaws, hoping to catch a glimpse of Cho's eyes…" He snickered but walked off before Harry could comment further.

Walking across the Hall, Ron could basically feel the gaze of his brothers boring onto his back. He wanted nothing better than to give them the finger, but that wouldn't give a good lasting impression on the beautiful French girl, or her English Malfoy's sister friend.

"Um…" He began, standing behind Malfoy's sister, who jumped about twenty feet in the air at having him stand behind her. "Sorry if I startled you."

"Erm… that's okay." Malfoy's sister brushed her long brown hair out of her face. "Hey, aren't you George's brother? Ron Weasley?"

"Yeah." Ron shifted awkwardly under the confused expression Malfoy's sister was using. "Anyway, I wanted to ask you something."

'Sure." Malfoy's sister glanced around at her group of friends which included, Ron noticed, both the pretty French chick and Cho Chang. "I'll see you guys soon." She got up and grabbed her bag, somehow instinctively knowing that Ron wouldn't like to ask the question in front of everyone. "Do you want to go outside?"

"Nah, the Entrance Hall'll be okay." Drawled Ron. "Why're you in Ravenclaw?"

"Oh." She seemed taken aback by this question. "Well, I was sorted in my third year. I was at Beauxbatons you see, before." She answered his silent question. "Anyway, what did you want to ask me?"

Ron blushed red and fingered the sleeve of his robe carefully. "I wanted to ask about that pretty French girl you know."

Malfoy's sister laughed quietly, the sound taking Ron aback. It wasn't mean, or snarky, or at another's expense. It was just a laugh. "Fleur? You'd be surprised how many people have asked me that question. I'm sorry, you don't have much of a chance. She's part Veela, you know? I'm sorry though. I'm Selene by the way."

She didn't hold her hand out, but her smile was warm and slightly reminiscent of the look Hermione gets when she meets someone for the first time. "Ron Weasley."

Still, Ron felt slightly downcast as he walked back to the Gryffindor table. He sat down grumpily in front of a platter of bacon and hastily piled a load onto his plate. Harry noticed his friend's downcast expression and shifted into Ron's peripheral vision. "No luck, huh?"

"Nah." Ron stabbed the bacon, annoyed, but managed to remember the question Harry had asked him what seemed like an era ago. "But that Selene girl, she seems pretty good friends with Cho. You're in with a chance, mate."

"Told you she wasn't too bad." Hermione pointed out, complacency evident in her voice.

"Shut up 'Mione." Ron growled, shoving the bacon in his mouth. "She seems nice, but you can never tell."

Hermione rolled her eyes, a gesture that was now well known to both boys. "If you'll excuse me, I need to visit the library before first lesson. I will see you two in Transfiguration."

"We'll walk out with you." Harry tugged Ron away from his castle of bacon. "Ron, stop eating. We'll be late for McGonagall."

"But-" Ron protested much to his chagrin, but allowed himself to be dragged out of the hall. "Bacon!" He pointed at the hall carefully, like he was talking to a child. "Harry, Hermione, bacon!"

"We know Ronald."

There was a considerable crowd gathered in the Entrance Hall, and the trio hastily pushed themselves to the forefront of it without a moments hesitation.

Fred and George were at the eye of the hurricane, both looking very pleased with themselves along with Lee. They were each holding a flask of something unrecognisable.

George noticed Harry, Ron and Hermione and sent a grin in their direction. "Watch and learn ickle Ronnie, watch and learn." He teased, making the tips of Ron's ears turn pink.

"Aging Potion." Fred explained, dangling the flask between two fingers gleefully. "Only a bit, only need to be five months older."

Harry noticed Malfoy's sister shaking her head in the corner of the room, standing next to (his heart skipped a beat) Cho Chang. She looked like she was about to say something but, as predicted, Hermione got there first.

"It won't work." She warned, putting a hand on her hip scathingly.

"Of _course _it'll work 'Mione." George began.

"Dumbledore would never of thought that anyone would-"

"-Use anything as simple and idiotic as an Aging Potion" Lee finished. "You two gentlemen go first though, I'll follow if it works."

"Scared much?" Fred asked, but nodded to his twin as they took a swig of the potion. "Here goes."

The twins hopped over the Age Line in perfect unison, and for a couple of seconds nothing happened. Lee basically crowed with joy and tried to follow them over the line, not pausing for a moment like he probably should've done.

With a loud bang, Fred and George skidded backwards across the Entrance Hall floor, Lee looking slightly sheepish. Within milliseconds they had grown long white beards complete with moustaches and sideburns.

"But you said-"They said simultaneously. Wearing identical expressions of fury, they wrestled each other to the ground, engaging in some weird type of wrestling match. Lee just stood and laughed at their faces, along with the majority of the Entrance Hall.

"Mr Weasleys." Dumbledore greeted, a twinkle in his eyes. "May I say how good those beards look on you?"

The twins stopped wrestling for a minute and took a good look at each other. They too broke out into laughter as Dumbledore continued.

"Mr Jorden, will you take these two up to the Hospital wing? Madam Pomfrey is already treating Miss Fawcett of Ravenclaw and Mr Stubbins of Hufflepuff."

Lee picked the twins up and escorted them up the staircase, his loud peals of laughter emanating down the stairs as they walked away. The gathering gradually began to disperse, and Hermione nodded slightly, emphasising her earlier point. They continued on to their Transfiguration classroom, crossing their fingers that McGonagall wasn't there yet.

Later that evening, the trio sat at the Gryffindor table along with the rest of their house, trying to eat something but failing miserably. Ron had surprisingly only managed a few mouthfuls of his pie before giving up and starting to watch Percy's every move.

Lily gave Percy a sly little wave and mouthed something obscene in his direction, making Harry choke on his pumpkin juice and splutter slightly.

Percy resolutely ignored Lily, instead focusing his efforts on Mr Crouch, who was seated beside him. Ron fought the urge to give him the two-fingered salute and instead turned to Hermione, who was talking excitedly about previous Tournaments to a very bored Ginny.

"'Mione, how long is it?" Ron groaned.

Before Hermione could answer, the tables suddenly cleared of all food and Dumbledore got to his feet.

"Welcome!" He called and the hall immediately became silent. "The time has come for the Goblet of Fire to choose its three competitors! If your name is called, I ask you to walk up this hall to the room to the left of this, exiting through the door to the left of the top table."

"Come on Angelina." Lily muttered. "Don't let it be a Slytherin, don't let it be a Slytherin…"

The Goblet glowed bright green, before spitting out a few sparks and emitting a small sheet of paper into Dumbledore's outstretched hands. He unfurled it, scanned it for a second, before a small smile played at the corners of his mouth.

"The champion for Beauxbatons Academy." He read aloud. "Is Fleur Delacour!"

"Is that-" Harry asked Ron, which was reciprocated with a nod.

Over at the Ravenclaw table, he could see Fleur being congratulated by many of the other Beauxbatons girls, and notably Malfoy's sister, who gave Fleur a hug before pushing her in the direction of the room behind the top table. Fleur stood up, attracting the amorous attention of many boys as she sauntered up to the door.

The Goblet glowed bright green again, and many people were shushed by their classmates as Dumbledore began to read out the name on the second sheet of paper. "The champion for Durmstrang is Viktor Krum!"

"It's Krum!" Ron yelled above the great noise that was coming from the Durmstrang students. "It's obvious he would be the champion!"

Dumbledore yelled for attention again as the third and last slip of paper jumped out of the Goblet. Lily's mutters became more and more attentive as she prayed to Satan for it not to be a Slytherin.

"The champion for Hogwarts is Cedric Diggory!" Dumbledore said, but was barely heard above the ecstatic screams of the Hufflepuffs. Ron sighed and buried his head in his hands, and Lily gripped her fork in her hand with a murderous expression on her face.

"Damn." She swore, keeping her left hand pinned to the table so she wouldn't stab Cedric before he even made it to the back room. "Bad luck Angelina."

Harry felt slightly depressed that in fact it wouldn't be a Gryffindor representing them in the Triwizard Tournament, but decided to focus his attention on keeping Lily from committing Huffle-cide.

That's why he didn't notice when the Goblet glowed green for a fourth time. Gradually, the hall emptied of any noise and Harry returned his attention to Dumbledore, who was staring incredulously at the sheet of parchment in his hand.

"Harry Potter."

Harry looked at Cedric as they walked up the grand staircase together. "Well, um." Cedric began, fiddling with his shirt collar carefully. "I'll see you tomorrow Harry."

"Yeah, bye." Harry waved awkwardly as Cedric departed to the Hufflepuff common room.

Continuing up the stairs to Gryffindor table, Harry took a deep breath and looked up at the Fat Lady. "Hinkypunks." He said, ignoring the Fat Lady's interested glance.

"HARRY!" Everyone yelled as he walked through the portrait hole. He was bombarded by questions and congratulatory screams on all sides, as he noticed wryly the huge banners depicting Harry as Triwizard champion.

"Glad it could be a Gryffindor, even if it's not me!" Angelina commented, patting Harry on the shoulder.

"How did you get in without getting a beard?" The twins yelled over the ruckus. "Wish you'd told us mate!"

"Well done Harry!" An unfamiliar fifth year screeched.

"Really?" Lily cocked an eyebrow. "You didn't tell me? I'd of bloody obliterated Diggory! It's all up to you now!"

Harry waded his way through the groups of people to the stairs that led to the Gryffindor Fourth-Year boy's dormitory, turning around to address the crowds of delighted groupies that had followed him. "Thanks, yes, thanks. But I'm going to bed."

**Hello!**

**I'm here to warn you, I shall be leaving chapters on cliff-hangers from this day forth! HA HA!**

**I've put another story up, a one-shot, it's not the greatest but I'm pretty pleased with it. Anyway, I've got lots and lots of good ideas in my mind and I plan to use them all sometime.**

**Please review!  
Eleanor xxx**


	10. Chapter 9: Annoying Assumptions

**Ciao! (Italian for 'Hi!')**

**Welcome to chapter 9! And I have officially passed 1,000 views! Thank you so much for supporting me! Come on you guys, you know what that little button does and how it helps me! Please review!**

**Thanks to Kacey (again!) for her review, I'm glad you think Selene's nice, but I do need some indication if she's becoming a bit too Mary-Sue. I've included some dialogue to dispel this eventuality but I still need some outside view on it. And you're right; I'd never abandon this story! I've got so much to write still!**

**And, unfortunately, I don't own Harry Potter. All recognisable characters belong to Jo.**

**This chapter focuses more on the relationship between Fleur and Selene, and there is a lot more of the twins in this too! (If you hadn't guessed the twins are my favourite canon characters along with Sirius!) I also added a little of Fred's P.O.V. as he actually notices Selene for the first time as more than just Malfoy's sister… Ha, actually now I read it it's reminding me of how everyone reacts in my school when someone gets given a Valentine's Day present!**

Chapter 9: Annoying Assumptions

Fleur Delacour sauntered through the Great Hall, attracting the gazes of many boys, English, French and Scandinavian. That was a natural part of her Veela charm, and it was magnified by her new status as Triwizard champion.

And she couldn't deny that she liked it. In fact, she loved it. She always had. She always outshone everyone at Beauxbatons by a significant majority and anyone accepted into her popular clique was lucky beyond words. It was very select.

She'd shocked everyone by accepting the English girl into her group, least of all her childhood friends who'd moved up to magical education with Fleur. She was geeky, shy, clumsy, everything that was the opposite of Fleur. She couldn't of been more secluded if she'd stuck a label on her forehead that read 'Hermit Crab'.

"Selene!" Fleur exclaimed, sitting down next to her friend, making Michael Corner promptly ignore his erstwhile girlfriend and drool slightly at her. "It eez too loud een 'ere, no? May we go outside?" Fleur asked, cringing awkwardly at her poor English. "Pardon." She apologised to Selene's English friends.

"Of course." Selene slung her bag over her shoulder, nearly clobbering some poor second year around the head. Fleur rolled her eyes at Selene's continued lack of grace, despite the classes she had given her four years ago. She was probably still as bad at dancing as ever. "We can go to the Black Lake?" She offered, speaking in French for the benefit of Fleur.

Smiling gratefully, Fleur nodded, sending her silvery blonde hair swishing in a long curtain. "That would be lovely."

The two friends walked outside into the grounds, Fleur catching the eye of a particularly handsome English boy and giving him a flirty wave. Selene laughed at her non-stop flirting gene and checked who it was, in order to judge whether she should give him psychiatric help afterwards.

To her surprise, it was George. Stifling a giggle behind her hand, she dragged Fleur away from him and swallowed her helpless laughter. "Oh, that's George Weasley." She explained.

"Hmm… George Weasley…" Fleur pondered, tapping her chin with a slim finger thoughtfully. "He is handsome. Do you know him?"

"Um, kinda." Selene reasoned in her mind. "I sit next to him in Defence against the Dark Arts. I don't really know him all that well but he's okay, I guess."

"He's more than okay." Fleur grinned, showing her spotless white teeth. "He's… what do you English call it? Lush, that's the word! He's lush!"

Selene pretended to puke at Fleur's words, but laughed at her friend's attitude towards the highly annoying boy. "Come on then, we'll go talk to him!"

"Okay!" Fleur laughed, spinning around, her hair flying out around her. "Let's go talk to this George Weasley!"

Funnily enough, George was still staring at Fleur when the pair walked up to him. Selene giggled again, snapping him out of his stupor.

"Selene!" He greeted with a crazed grin. "And who is this lovely girl?" He bent to kiss Fleur's hand. "George Weasley. You must be Fleur Delacour."

"Eet eez _charmant_ to meet you too George Weezly." Fleur reciprocated, making George blush furiously. "Selene 'as told me much about you!"

"Fleur…" Selene warned. "Don't overdo it."

"Has she now?" George tore his gaze away from Fleur and regarded Selene. "All good, I hope?"

"Now zat would be telling." Fleur laughed, sending a sly glance at Selene.

"Um, I need to go to the Library!" Selene improvised wildly, trying to drag Fleur away from her flirt-fest. "Come on, I still need to show you Ravenclaw tower!"

"Of course. Goodbye George!" Fleur gave George another flirty wave before following Selene back towards the castle. "Nah, he's weird."

Selene tried and failed to hold back her laughter, instead dissolving into helpless giggles at George's dumbstruck expression and Fleur's conclusion. "Ha, he has a twin you know. I haven't actually met his doppelganger, but they're supposedly identical."

"Ooh…" Fleur giggled girlishly, sending two nearby Hufflepuffs into a daydream. "You can have fun with twins. Do you remember the Narlart twins that were two years above us? Samuel and Jaques, that's it. I dated both of them in our second year." She thought aloud nostalgically.

One of the reasons Selene was so shy, apart from her childhood upbringing, was down to the fact that no one ever gave her a second glance when she was with Fleur. Or Cho, for that matter. Fleur was part-Veela, and was generically beautiful. Cho was Chinese, which made her interesting to many and she had a slightly similar mantra to Fleur, minus the heavy flirting at all hours of the day.

The Narlat twins had passed into French fokelore several years ago. Fleur had originally dated Samuel, until Jaques decided it would be funny to pretend to be his twin brother for a day, and vica versa. Fleur realised this with the help of Selene and made a Polyjuice Potion, and transformed Leanne into her body double for an hour. Needless to say, this didn't end well and both twins got so confused that Selene ended up having to Stun them and erase their memories of the incident.

"Ah, good times." Selene reminisced, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth. "First time I ever used Stupefy."

Fred's P.O.V.

"George?" Fred clicked his fingers several times in front of his twin's face. "Georgie?"

"Huh?" He started, looking around. "What? Where are – oh. Hi Fred." He greeted, shoving his hands into the pockets of his robes. "What're you doing?"

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Fred groaned, face-palming himself. "Don't tell me, don't tell me, Snape looked at you. I'm right, aren't I?"

George looked at Fred strangely. "No… why would you think that. No," A glazed look passed over his expression. "Fleur Delacour talked to me…"

Snickering, Fred glanced over to where Fleur was animatedly chatting to a couple of pretty Ravenclaws. "Nah mate, you okay? She'd never talk to you."

"She did." He insisted, gesturing to the conversation the three girls were having. "See the girl on the left?" George asked, pausing for an answer.

Fred looked over and noticed the girl George was meaning. She had her back to him but she seemed quite tall for a girl and she had long brown hair that she brushed off her face every so often. "Her? Yeah. Cute I think, but I can't tell without seeing her face." He reasoned.

For some dumbfounded reason George found this hilarious. "Right… well, she knows Fleur and somehow got Fleur to talk to me! Cool, right?"

"Wait, she knows Fleur?" Fred asked, putting two and two together to make pi r squared. "So she's-"

The girl looked around for a second. She was damn pretty, even if Fred was technically dating Angelina for the moment. Bright light blue eyes, slight smile… You couldn't really forget someone _that _shy.

"Malfoy's sister?" Fred recoiled slightly. He had just thought Malfoy's sister was _cute_? What the bloody hell was wrong with him?

"Yup." Grinned George, looking way too pleased with himself at Fred's disgusted expression. "You know what, I think you should go talk to her."

"No fucking way George." He ignored the Ravenclaw table and glared at his brother. "She'll try to convert me to her family's pig-headed beliefs and sacrifice Errol to whatever bloody god her family worships."

"You're getting her confused with Lily there." George reminded, patting him on the shoulder consolingly. "And as Lily is younger, shorter and weirder. They are truly nothing alike."

"You sure about that?" Muttered Fred, glowering darkly at his dinner. "They are cousins after all."

"I have a cousin?" A way too excited and hyperactive Lily bounced into sight. "Yay! Someone to convert to Satanism!"

"I don't think this cousin would react very well Lily." George tapped his fingers onto the table. "In fact, if I'm not mistaken Freddie here just thought that-"

"SHUT UP!" Fred gritted his teeth and focused on maintaining his staring contest with his plate. "You're mistaken."

"Ah, has ickle Freddie got an ickle crush?" Now Ginny was on the plot. After all, it's annoying having your twin brother taunt him, even worse when he's joined by a maniac teenage girl but the worst of all is when your little sister joins in on the fun.

"Shut it Ginny." If it was possible, Fred's expression got even darker and his smile completely emigrated. "I do not fancy Malfoy's sister."

Damn.

"MALFOY'S SISTER?" Ginny positively squealed. "Oh my god this is hilarious! Wait until I tell Ron and Harry, they'll be so surprised I think it might give them a heart attack!" She giggled manically.

"Gin, don't your hopes up. I do not fancy her. She's just… okay looking."

"Okay looking?" George raised a mocking eyebrow at his twin. "God, that's a bit of an understatement. He was openly gawping at her a moment ago Gin."

"I was _not_." Fred defended, crossing his arms and abandoning the pointless staring contest to glare around at the small group that had gathered.

"If you say so." Ginny sung, ducking the swipe that Fred sent at her head.

Normal P.O.V.

"Selene." Fleur whispered in a hushed voice.

"Yeah?" She looked up from her book, a glimmer of surprise in her face.

"The Weasley twins are looking at you." She squealed.

"What?" Selene looked around quickly. Sure enough, one of them was staring right at her. "No, um… that's weird. They hardly talk to me, much less stare at me."

"You're in denial!" Cho crowed. "I knew your absolute refusal to date was unfounded!" She looked like she was about to stalk right over to the Gryffindor's and announce this fact through a magical megaphone.

"No, I never said I didn't date, I only said that I'd have to find someone crazy enough to date a Ravenclaw Malfoy." Selene returned to _Advanced Charms and their Magical Abilities, _shaking her head mentally at Cho's inability to understand her total unpopularity with most of the school. Those twins were probably figuring out how to prank her anyway, and that's not a good thing at all.

"Those twins are bloody crazy." Now Cedric had miraculously appeared. Damn those nosy Hufflepuffs.

"Really? I'd never noticed." She muttered sarcastically, keeping her focus trained on the book in front of her. The Patronus Charm, creates a spirit guardian to ward away creatures that have no other defence tactics, examples include-

"Ignore her." She could hear Cho explaining to her ersatz boyfriend. "She's in denial that a boy has looked at her for something other than just homework help."

"Well done Selene." Cedric patted her shoulder in congratulation. "You just had to wait for a bit, that's all."

"Thanks Cedric, but I'm afraid Cho's got you confused. Those twins were planning how to prank me that's all. Don't get your hopes up." Selene slipped the book expertly into a spare space in her bag. "What time is it?"

"Almost _vingt_." Fleur checked her watch carefully. "It would be good to leave soon. You wanted to show me Ravenclaw tower, _non?_"

"Oh! Yes!"

Selene glanced to over the table where Cho and Cedric were sitting. "I'll see you later Cho. Nice to see you Cedric."

Cho gave her friend a little wave, instead preferring to perch on Cedric's lap while he muttered a goodbye.

Fred's P.O.V.

"She's going now; if you want to talk to her you'd better hurry up!" George pressed, nudging his twin in the direction of the Entrance Hall.

"I don't want to talk to her." Fred muttered, scowling at his shoes. "Leave me alone."

"I… am mortally wounded!" George clutched his heart dramatically and twirled around, shocking several first years into oblivion.

"Shut up." He growled, still staring at the floor as he began the long walk towards the staircase. "What is your bloody problem Ge-"

He wasn't looking where he was going and promptly walked straight into some poor girl. "Oh, I'm sorry." Fred apologised hastily. The girl squeaked slightly and stooped to the floor to retrieve her dropped books, along with her friend.

"Oh, look who it is!" George grinned and pushed Fred towards the girl on the floor. "Hello Selene! Fleur!"

"George you fucking bastard!" He whispered, as Selene raised her eyes to smile at George. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Selene," George ignored him. "This is my slightly worse-looking twin brother Fred. Say hello Fred." Then he whispered to Selene in an undertone. "He's annoyed because I got him to look at you."

"GEORGE!" Clutching his forehead, Fred kept himself from lunging at his brother.

"Um, hi." Selene transferred her gaze to Fred. "It's nice to meet you. I'm Selene.

His glare could've frozen over the North Pole. "Selene _Malfoy_."

Her smile dropped and her eyes darkened for a split second. "Yeah, so?" She snapped, standing back on her own two feet. "Got a problem with that?"

"No, I never have a problem with disgusting, two-faced pureblood bigots." Fred said sarcastically. "Simply a _pleasure _to meet you."

Maybe that wasn't the wisest move to make, because now he had two angry girls standing in front of him. The French chick looked like she was about to club him to death with her handbag and Selene's coldly disinterested look was reminiscent of her mother. Fred could feel George's shocked expression boring into his skull. He never flipped out at someone like that unless they'd seriously pissed him off.

"Well, you're out of luck then." Selene gritted her teeth. "The only pureblood bigot around here's you. Nice to see you again George."

**Hi!**

**Before you say anything about Fred being such a dick at the end of this chapter; I think that George is the slightly more level-headed of the pair. He's more likely to accept someone than Fred is, because Fred's just really stubborn. Don't worry though, he'll come round to Selene eventually… really eventually after lots and lots of insult-throwing contests and Schadenfreude (German word; pleasure at another's expense). But he should start to like her at around Christmas is everything goes to plan…**

**As always, REVIEW AND I'LL GIVE YOU COOKIES!**

**Eleanor xxx**


	11. Chapter 10: Never Back Down

**Konnichiwa!**

**Salutations to my likeminded Potterhead followers and their consistent reviews and favs! Thank you so much for supporting me over the last 10 chapters! **

**Wow. Thanks lightbabe, and you're right Fred's horrible but he does have reasons to not hear her out. Kacey, cookies you shall get! (Throws cookies around madly) I'm glad Selene's not a Mary-Sue, one of my favourite childhood programmes was full to the brim of them, all to varying degrees (See if anyone can guess what that programme was! Shout-out if you do!).**

**I promise that things will improve from here on out! Fred's just a little stubborn, he'll come round sometime. George is the slightly less Schadenfreude of the pair, but I doubt he'll ever me more than a very good friend of Selene.**

**And as always, I don't own Harry flamin' Potter!**

Chapter 10: Never Back Down

"Let me get this straight." Cho perched on the end of the sofa in the Ravenclaw common room. "You told Fred Weasley he was a pureblood bigot?"

"I've told you, I don't know what the hell I was thinking! You're talking to the girl that infamously had a bucket of candyfloss tipped over her head and didn't even swear, just laughed it off. What's wrong with me?" Selene threw down her book and buried her head in her hands.

"That was pretty funny, this however is not." Cho pointed out, picking up Selene's book and inspecting its contents. "Who does he think he is?"

"It doesn't matter Cho. This has happened before too many times to count but you're going overboard on this one. Leave me in peace to do my Transfiguration homework please; I need to change this book into an iguana before tomorrow."

Grabbing the book, Selene grabbed her wand again and tried in vain to change it into something at least resembling the lizard it was supposed to. She managed to give it a tail, but it wouldn't walk and you could still open it.

"Holy Rowena, you still can't do that?" Cho grinned sheepishly and fully transformed the book. "You need to give it a bit more oomph. You never have this problem in Charms."

"Well, Professor Flitwick's obsessed with the idea that I'm some kind of wonder kid. It'd be okay if he didn't tell _every single teacher in the school_! Now Professor McGonagall gives me extra homework and Snape sneers and makes some derogatory comment every time I screw up a potion, which is pretty much every other day." Selene tucked her legs up to her chest and untied her long hair from her ponytail. "Oh yeah, now my DADA partner's twin brother hates me and is convinced that I'm a total bitch just because I flipped out at him _once _and I'm dreading tomorrow because George will try and apologise for him and I'll go and apologise to Fred's face and he'll try to kill me."

"Calm down." Cho soothed, patting her friend on the shoulder. "Those Weasley twins are no good, you know that. In OWLs last year they spent the Charms exam trying to blow up Snape. There's no point wasting valuable brain power over them."

The next morning Selene made her way down to breakfast with a heavy heart. Today she had Potions, with those bloody Gryffindors and then double Defence, again with the Gryffindors, then Charms with the Hufflepuffs and then Transfiguration with the Slytherins. In other words, migraines and aching feet.

"Hello." Luna started to walk alongside her unexpectedly. "Your head is full of Nargles."

"Oh, thanks Luna." She smiled slightly at Luna's mismatched theories. She was one of the few that didn't think Luna was bonkers. Well, the whole world is bonkers, how could the world have people like Fred bloody Weasley in it if it wasn't crazy?

"What's wrong?" Luna was also very perceptive, and practically nothing got past her. If you'd broken up with your boyfriend, she was trying to give you necklaces made out of butterbeer corks and gurdyroot earrings. Fallen out with a friend? She'd be on your back in next to no time.

"Urgh, just Fred Weasley being a git." Selene yawned, and stifled it with the back of her hand. "Nothing new really. You okay?"

"My shoes have mysteriously disappeared again." Luna said dreamily, cocking her head to one side.

"Oh, do you want to borrow some of mine until they turn up?" She asked, glancing down at Luna's blissfully bare feet. "It's not good to go around in bare feet, especially in November."

"No, I'm okay. I've probably got smaller feet anyway." Luna smiled and turned to Selene. "I'm going to feed the Thestrals. Do you want to come?"

Involuntarily shuddering, Selene thought for a second. "No, I'd better not. I've never had much of a way with animals or plants. Have a nice time though Luna."

Luna gave Selene a little wave and walked off down another staircase, leaving Selene alone to her thoughts again. She couldn't really avoid apologising to either of them; it was one of her biggest flaws, her inability to leave someone unhappy for long. The Sorting Hat nearly put her in Hufflepuff, after all. She could apologise to George in DADA, but she didn't really want to go out of her way to apologise to Fred. She'd think of something though, she always did.

Sneaking a couple of slices of toast out of the hall, Selene nibbled on them as she made her way down to the courtyard - where she normally spent her free lesson on a Thursday morning. Taking her book out of her bag, she sat down on an empty bench and proceeded to attempt to change it into an iguana again.

"SELENE!" Fleur yelled, making Selene jump and drop the book on the ground. "What eez ze matter? You look cloudy!"

"It's stormy Fleur." She corrected, rolling her eyes and picking the book off the floor. "And I'm fine, unless you count yesterday as something."

"I 'ave told you, 'at Fred Weezly is _not worth it_!" Fleur flopped down on the bench dramatically.

"I never thought he was." Muttered Selene, stowing her wand in her robe pocket. "I never even spoke to him before yesterday and already he thinks I'm a miniature of my mother. I don't even resemble her _that _much. Father says my looks take after my dear Aunt."

"Ah, you are too _negative_!" Fleur exclaimed, standing up again. "I wish I could stay, but 'e 'ave wand weighing today! I shall see you soon!"

Kissing Selene once on each cheek Fleur sauntered off, heading for the castle. The bell rang, resonating across the grounds, signalling the start of the next lesson.

Swearing lightly under her breath, Selene raced across the courtyard and up the steps. It was bad enough having Snape breath down her neck while she stirred some potion and he hated her enough to give her detention even if she was only a few seconds late. And prefects generally don't get detention, so that'd be the end of her flawless reputation. Well, kind of flawless.

Dodging a few third years, Selene hurtled down the stairs to the dungeons, shivering for a second at the cold damp air that always seemed to linger around the potions rooms. And damn it, it looked like she was late, judging by the lack of loitering Gryffindors outside. Was is some kind of twisted fate that four of her six NEWT subjects she had with the Gryffindors?

"I'm sorry I'm late sir." She gasped, catching her breath for a second and avoiding the curious gazes of her classmates.

Professor Snape glared at her, like he always did. She'd always lacked the kind of quality that made Draco his favourite student, but his obvious contempt for her mercifully never went beyond the odd detention and taking points off Ravenclaw. He was obviously too scared of her father, although her dad had never defended her and got her out of detention once. If that's favouritism towards Draco she didn't know what was.

"Detention, Miss Malfoy. Sit down, or I'll take points off too." His cold gaze furthered this statement and Selene felt herself turning pink as she sat down next to Cho. "Thank you. Now, before Miss Malfoy so rudely interrupted us, we were about to create the Draught of Living Death. This is an intensely tricky potion and it is one," He looked pointedly at the Ravenclaws. "That I do not expect you to get right."

"What the bloody hell happened?" Cho whispered to Selene in an undertone, keeping one eye trained on the potions master. "What happened? You're hardly ever late."

"Fleur." Selene used as an explanation, quickly taking _Advanced Potion Making _out of her bag along with a pen and paper. "Weighing of the wands. Urgh, I don't know, Snape's just incredibly tetchy today. Stop looking at me like I swallowed your hamster."

"I don't own a hamster." Pointed out Cho, blithely passing her notes to her friend. "And shut up before it's a week's detention and twenty points off Ravenclaw."

After they had endured an hour of Snape snarling at her to get better at Potions and stop failing epically, it was time for yet another lesson that would screw her brain up, for very different reasons.

"Selene." George practically jumped on her the moment she sat down in DADA. "I'm so sorry about yesterday; Fred was being a prick he doesn't mean it."

"Calm down, calm down, I'm not going to flip out again. And mentioning that, I'm sorry I went mad. I don't actually think he's a pureblood bigot." Selene held up one finger before continuing, silencing George. "And no, I'm not going to apologise, as I don't think he'd listen to me."

George raised an eyebrow. "He'd listen if I made him."

"Somehow, I don't think he'll _want _to listen to me. Not after I completely flipped out at him in the middle of the bloody Entrance hall. Not after I basically insulted him, whether I meant it or not."

"He's reasonable, he'll listen."

"Okay, I'll apologise to him. But I swear to Godric, if you're wrong I will read out my Arithmancy notes to you until you die of boredom." Selene warned, containing a smile at the look on George's face. "Joke! I promise I won't."

"I was worried for a second!" George complained, but smiling all the same. "And that is the least funny joke I have ever heard, and Fred's told some pretty crap ones."

"I wasn't _that _bad, was it?" She asked, scanning her notes for any mention of what they'd be doing today. "But I digress, I'll apologise after the lesson, if you can keep him from running away that long."

So, two hours of harrowing cramp and blatantly ignoring George's crude jokes about the sexual tension between her and Fred later, she was hanging around outside the classroom, waiting for George to emerge with his twin.

"T minus 3 minutes." She muttered, timing their obviously hurried conversation grimly. "Oh for Godric's sake George, I'm not a robot I need to eat."

Feeling the strangest urge to re-do her hair, Selene raised the proverbial eyebrow at her nervousness. He was only a guy who she'd only spoke to long enough to insult him, let alone exchange more than a basic few blunt words. So why the bloody hell was she worrying about her bloody hair?

"…She's nice, trust me." The door opened and she could hear George speaking. "Actually really lovely, you just pissed her off."

"I don't give a shit about what that tart has to say!" Now it was Fred. "She's as bad as the lot of them in my opinion, her dear father's probably organising a way to get her off Snape's detention as we speak."

They rounded the corner and narrowly avoided bashing right into Selene. She noticed, slightly annoyed at his assumptions, that Fred had at least the grace to blush slightly.

"Hi." She said coolly, keeping her face like a blank sheet of paper. "I wanted to apologise for yesterday. I shouldn't have said that."

"Damn right you shouldn't have." Fred murmured, trying to keep his voice quiet but it somehow seemed to echo along the whole corridor. "Yes, okay, you can go now."

The fuse on Selene's abnormally long temper seemed to light at that second. "Aren't you going to say anything?" She asked, putting a hand on her hip and inwardly cringing at her forwardness.

"No." Fred glared at her and muttered something else under his breath.

"Excuse me? Did you just call me a slag? Well, you should take a good look at yourself Fred Weasley, and maybe, just maybe, you'll get the correct context of that expression." Selene recommended, her eyes widening as her temper started to get the better of her.

"You know I could make your life a living hell?" He scowled, prodding her sharply. "Very easily. I have the entire Gryffindor house on my side."

George looked like he was about to intervene here but Selene jumped the gun. "My life's already a living hell so I can't see how you can make it any worse. And can I just say, _I apologised._ I tried to apologise, anyway. And you know what? I actually meant it."

Swallowing the tears that threatened to spill, Selene turned on her heel and managed to keep from running away from that bloody boy. She could faintly hear George berating his twin about something, but she didn't hang around to find out what. When Marcus Flint had downed her in candyfloss, she'd ran and to be honest, you can only commit social suicide once. It was only when she'd reached Ravenclaw Tower that she started to see the funny side.

Thinking about it, she'd committed social suicide too many times to draw an accurate conclusion. The only reason she was still allowed in post-Quidditch match parties was because she was the chaser.

She was so consumed in her thoughts, she didn't notice Professor Dumbledore walking down the corridor towards her.

"Oh! I'm so sorry Professor!" Selene exclaimed, blushing at her awkward clumsiness. "I wasn't looking where I was going! Are you okay?"

"I'm quite alright thank you Miss Malfoy. May I ask why you aren't in the hall?" Professor Dumbledore asked, a twinkle in his blue eyes.

"I, well, was talking to someone." She generalised, not willing to go over every miniscule detail. "They weren't very happy with me."

"May I ask who it was?" Dumbledore inquired, smiling down at the Ravenclaw prefect.

"Fred Weasley." She admitted, feeling her face flush up again. How many times did she blush in a day?

"Curious, curious indeed." Dumbledore tapped his chin thoughtfully, a smile spreading over his face. "I thought as much… anyway. Do have a nice day my dear."

And with that, he was walking off down the hallway, leaving Selene standing in the middle of the room wondering what the bloody hell just happened.

"Okay…" She shrugged off and continued walking down the corridor. Before she could reach the staircase however, a door opened a few feet ahead of her and several people walked out; judging by their expressions they were the Triwizard champions.

"Selene!" Fleur exclaimed, drawing more attention to the said individual. "'Ello! I assumed you would be een ze hall! 'Arry, you know Selene, no?"

Harry appeared from the room, a strange look on his face. Selene could see from his expression that he recognised her but bless him he didn't point it out.

"I know her brother." He corrected, actually _smiling _at Selene. What was this? An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth etc. etc.? "You're friends with Cho, right?"

"Yeah." Harry was very transparent when it came to Cho. Anyone could see that he blatantly fancied her. "Hi Cedric." She greeted the Hufflepuff warmly as he emerged.

"Hi Selene." He reciprocated with a small smile. "Is Cho down in the hall?"

"I think so." She thought aloud but Cedric was already halfway down the corridor. "Oh well. Um, yeah.' She suddenly felt rather awkward being in front of he brother's worst enemy. Rowena only knows how many times she had to listen to Draco whining about him last summer. "I'll see you soon Harry. I'll tell Cho you said hi, okay?"

Harry blushed furiously and hid his face from view. "'K." He muttered, walking back down the way Selene had came. "Bye Fleur, Selene."

"Bye 'Arry!" Fleur answered for both of them, giving him a little wave as he walked away. "Wait until I tell you zees Selene! Eet was so _interessant, non?_"

**Hello again my Harry Potter friends!**

**Enjoying the rain? I'm not, it's bipolar weather over in good ol' England and the Midlands (where I live) and it's not fun AT ALL!**

**I've filled a page with made up curse words and expressions I think wizards and witches would use (eg. Oh my Godric, Holy Rowena, In Salazar's name) so I don't have to scour my brain at random times to find them. Hop you like the ones I included, I will still be using normal ones but I wanted to be creative so geez. Sue me. Actually don't I'm broke.**

**I'm officially going to Germany soon too! (0:00 4****th**** July GMT) So I'm hyperactive and trying to forget about my exams.**

**Anyway, enough about me, over to you! What did you think about this chapter? I loved it, but I digress, you are my audience, REVIEW!**

**Eleanor xxx**

**P.S. I still need drawings of my OCs done; I've tried out drawing a scene set in January that includes Selene and Fred but it's slow work and isn't great. Please help me! I'll love you forever (No, actually that's a bit weird, I'll just owe you so much and give you millions of shout outs and publicity). I would get my friends at school to help me but they all think I'm strange enough even without the FanFiction. Anyway, PLEASE! I can't stress how much help I need!**


	12. Chapter 11: Potter Doesn't Stink

**Hello again!**

**Thank you so much to Kacey again, I'm so sorry you're ill but as far as I know that isn't lethal so I'm not too worried. Oh, and I'm glad you liked your virtual cookies, they might have been a little burnt. And you got the Fred point spot on, well done for that. Don't worry about the drawings, I'm sure someone'll help me. And to .129, I hope my PM sorted that question out for you. If you have any more don't hesitate to contact me again.**

**Weasley Twins: SHE DOESN'T OWN US!**

**Me: Where the hell did you two come from?**

**George: We've been behind you all this time.**

**Fred: You know that, right?**

**Okay… anyway, here's chapter 11!**

Chapter 11: Potter Doesn't Stink

Harry Potter was annoyed.

Pretty much the entirety of Hogwarts, minus the Gryffindors, were wearing huge, obnoxious badges. It'd be okay if they were just for S.P.E.W., but no. Malfoy, not intent with making Potions shit, had now made a load of badges that insulted him.

_Support CEDRIC DIGGORY-_

_ The REAL Hogwarts Champion!_

"Like them, Potter?" Malfoy said loudly in the Entrance hall a couple of days before the first task. "That's not all they do, think that's boring?"

He pressed the badge smartly and instantly the red text turned to green and the words _Potter Stinks _emerged on the badge. The Slytherins all laughed ungainly, pushing past Harry as they made their way down to the Dungeons.

"Ignore them." Hermione advised, watching the backs of Crabbe and Goyle descend down the stairs. "Everyone knows you're a real champion, and that Malfoy's just messing with yo-"

"OI! Granger!" Pansy Parkinson yelled across the hall. "Seen Witch Weekly? They seem to think you're stunningly pretty! What were they looking at, a troll?"

"So witty, Parkinson." Hermione said sarcastically. "So clever."

"Come on 'Mione, we need to get to Hogsmede." Harry interjected. "Seriously, before Ron gets here. I don't want to have to see him unless I have to." He said bitterly, remembering the fight he'd had with his best friend. "Don't you dare say I should talk to him, because I don't want to."

Hermione obeyed this rule but grumbled slightly under her breath. They set off in the direction of Hogsmede, ignoring the many wolf-whistles and furtive glances that were sent their way.

"Hip hip hello!" Lily screamed into their ears. "How are you today? Would you like me to take an axe to Rita Skeeter for you Hermione? Come on, I need permission…" She whined, an evil glint in her green eyes.

"It's okay Lily." Hermione groaned at the strange conversation they were being forced to have with their pyromaniac friend. "Do you want to come into Hogsmede with us?"

"Nah, I'm meeting my sister." Lily drawled, yawning slightly. "Mother seems to think I need authority, not that Dora's any good with that."

Neither Harry or Hermione had met Lily's elder sister, but from what Lily had told them she was an Auror, had been friends with Charlie Weasley in the past and was amazingly clumsy. She also adored her younger sister, but had been known to fear for Lily's sanity quite a few times.

"Okay, have a nice time then!" Hermione waved to her as Lily started down the road, humming a snatch of some weird muggle tune as she went. "Don't look at me like that!" She asked, glancing at Harry. "She can be good fun, and she would've massacred anyone who so much as looked at us."

"She's good fun if you like feeding Slytherins to Hippogriffs." Harry muttered, shoving his hands in his robe pockets. "Or if you like hacking random doors to pieces because "The Magic Fairy Told Me To"."

"I don't think she actually fed Slytherins to Hippogriffs." Hermione mused as Hogsmede appeared.

"Yeah? So why did Blaise get stuck in the hospital wing for three days with a huge bite mark on his arse?" Harry kicked an unoffending tree branch to vent his anger and turned to Hermione. "Never mind. Do you want to go to the Three Broomsticks? It has to be warmer in there than out here."

"Sure." Hermione agreed, holding open the door to said place and breathing in the warm air. "Yup you're definitely onto something Harry."

They took a seat near the back of the pub, Hermione going up to the bar to order them both a Butterbeer. Harry spotted Cho Chang, surrounded by her friends and noticed, his heart gave a sudden leap, that she wasn't wearing a badge.

Selene turned round from the gossiping group and shot a smile at Harry, rolling her eyes and twirling a delicate finger around her left ear subtly. She wasn't wearing a badge either, but an S.P.E.W. one was in its place. Hers was bright orange, and the shade hurt Harry's eyes slightly. Nevertheless, he gave her a friendly smile in return and tried to look sympathetic.

"Two Butterbeers!" Hermione exclaimed, slopping froth slightly over the table. "What _are _you looking at?"

"Oh, just saying hi to Selene." Harry shrugged off, averting his eyes from Cho's black hair.

"I told you she wasn't bad, didn't I?" Hermione reminded, sipping her Butterbeer complacently. "Oh! That reminds me! I need to ask her about S.P.E.W.!"

Taking a notebook with the offending letters stamped on top out of her bag, Hermione got up again and walked over to the table that was filled with Ravenclaw girls. She returned a couple of seconds later with Selene in tow and a slightly put-out Cho and co. in the background.

"Hi Harry." Selene smiled again, taking a chair offered by Hermione. "Are you in S.P.E.W. too?"

"Yeah." Harry said non-committedly. "Why are you in it, again?"

"Well, my family had a house-elf once." She hazarded. "One of the only decent people to talk to around the Manor. Helped me out quite a few times too, I owe him a lot."

"Dobby?" Harry asked, before facepalming himself. Of course it was Dobby, Malfoy's house elf was hers too. "Oh, yeah, sorry. Hope you didn't mind me setting him free."

"Not at all." Selene reassured. "I would've done it myself if… never mind. It doesn't matter now anyway. Hermione, what did you want to go over?"

The two of them talked S.P.E.W. for a while, but Harry couldn't keep up with their intensely technical conversation for long. Now he thought about it, the two were very alike, although Selene was much less bossy and overbearing.

To his amusement, even they got tired of debating elf rights after a while and started to talk about muggle music, although how a pure-blood witch knew about bands like Oasis and Nirvana he had no idea. Just one more mystery to add to the already extensive list.

"Alright Harry, Hermione?" One of the twins walked up to the table. "Who're you talking to 'Mione?"

Selene looked up from the heated argument and glared at the twin sharply. "Didn't think you'd be here." She said coolly, taking Harry aback. He'd never seen her like this before.

"Well, after you called me a pure-blood bigot and a slag I decided to come and kill you." Either Fred or George said sarcastically. "I don't want to talk to a Malfoy, love, so do us a favour and fuck off."

"One, you called me a pure-blood bigot first. Two, I didn't technically call you slag but you did. Three, I was talking to Hermione. So sorry, but I don't answer to gits."

Harry chuckled slightly at this despite himself, but quickly stifled it at the furious look on the twin's face. "Um, George?" He tried.

"It's _Fred_." Selene muttered, venom in her voice. "Although he also answers to dickhead and judging idiot. If George were here, he wouldn't be trying to pin a label on me."

"I couldn't pin a label on you even if I wanted to love." Fred scowled. "I ran out of safety pins. I thought you of all people would be wearing a "Support Cedric Diggory" badge. No, but it seems someone's puked on you."

Selene stood up, clenching her fist. "There's a reason you're not in Ravenclaw Fred, and it's because you're dumb." She poked him in the chest, making him double over in exaggerated pain. "No wonder you only got three OWLs, and to be honest I don't understand how you got those. George I can understand, because he didn't judge me the moment he saw me. Want a life Fred? Because you sure as hell don't have one at the moment."

With a parting glare and a rude hand gesture, Fred stalked off to wherever he was before. Selene slumped down in her chair, wiping her cheek quickly.

"What was that about?" Hermione asked, looking at Selene askance. "I've never heard so many swear words come out of his mouth."

"He hates me." Selene said matter-of-factly. "George is nice to me though, which is why I can't understand Fred. I mean," She took a deep breath. "You should've seen him last week. I tried to apologise for calling him a bigot and he called me a slag. I meant that apology, I really did. The Sorting Hat was toying with Hufflepuff for a while anyway."

In an attempt to get her to forget the interruption, Harry was hit with a sudden idea. "Where did the Sorting Hat try to put you?" He asked, catching Hermione's eye knowingly.

Selene started slightly but smiled. "Well, it said it was Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff or even Gryffindor. Seriously, me in Gryffindor? It's never work. I'm not brave. Once it realise that it want between Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, eventually deciding that my intelligence would be of greater importance than my kindness. It did say something funny though."

"What?" Hermione inquired, intrigued despite herself.

"It said, it said that I would succeed at something as long as I wasn't in Slytherin. I don't know what is was, but when I asked the hat laughed and just said that I'd find out when the time was right. What the hell does that mean?" Selene asked helplessly, rolling her eyes. "That's the only riddle I can't puzzle out."

She stood up and smiled gratefully at Hermione. "I'll get back to you about that. I'm sorry you had to hear that argument, I wouldn't wish that on anyone. See you later Hermione. Nice to see you again Harry."

Selene's P.O.V.

Selene walked back over to where Cho and her other friends were sitting, nattering about something uninteresting. Forcing down the urge to go punch Fred Weasley in his stupid face, she took her earlier vacated seat and tried to restore some type of normality to her erroneous life.

"What were you talking about with Fred Selene?" Marietta giggled, exchanging a sideways glance with Cho. "It looked pretty heated."

The whole table was swamped in girlish giggles after this, and Selene rolled her eyes. "Guys, I had a very short conversation with him that included about twenty assorted swear words and a sudden urge to whack him. Calm down."

"Then why was he red as a cherry when he walked away?" Asked Cho, nodding over to where the twins were discussing something.

"I may have insulted him in front of Harry Potter and Hermione Granger." Selene could feel her face colouring at the memory of their weird exchange. "Although he wasn't blushing where I could see so you might be mistaken Cho."

"He _totally _fancies you!" Marietta squealed, echoed by the gaggle of girls around her. "He looked _totally _embarrassed at talking to you, he _totally _fancies you!"

Snorting, Selene took a hazardous glance towards the table the twins were occupying. "When hell freezes over Marietta. When my brother marries a Muggle, that's when Fred Weasley will fancy me. Aka never in a million years."

"Has your brother noticed…" Cho gestured to Selene's S.P.E.W. badge distastefully. "Yet?"

"Yes, but what can he do about it? Tell Dad?" Selene wondered aloud, tapping her fingers onto the old oak table. "Dad'll just send a Howler or something, and I always make the precaution of silencing them before reading them. It's a _good cause _Cho." Selene noted her friend's disgusted expression. "Remember Dobby?"

Everyone just stared at their crazy friend, wondering why the hell was she friends with the cool Ravenclaws.

"Never mind." Selene muttered, resuming her tapping rhythm and trying to forget about Fred Weasley. "I need to go to the bookshop. Cho, Marietta, are you guys going to come with me?"

"Nah." Marietta exhaled. "Too cold, and that bookshop gives me the creeps. How you spent over four hours in there in third year I have no idea."

"I hadn't been to an English bookshop in years Marietta, cut thirteen year old me some slack." Selene asked, pulling her coat and scarf on over her clothes. "I'll see you guys at dinner."

Walking across the room, Selene risked glancing at the table where Fred and George were sat. They were poring over a piece of parchment, murmuring under their breath. Struck with a sudden idea, Selene pointed her wand at Fred and thought 'Colouras Changas'. As Fred's hair turned a bright, brilliant shade of Ravenclaw blue, George looked up and burst into laughter. Selene grinned, pocketed her wand again and waved goodbye to Harry and Hermione, who were both laughing too.

"Selene Malfoy: 1, Fred Weasley: Nil." She said triumphantly, opening the door and walking outside into the bitter cold. The best part was; no one but her knew the counter-enchantment.

The bookshop smelt of mothballs, like it always did, but it was a comforting smell that vaguely reminded Selene of the library in Malfoy Manor. Try as she might, she never called it 'home'.

Running her slim fingers over the embossed letters on the spines of the books, Selene breathed in that quintessential 'new book smell'. The owner of the establishment looked up from The Daily Prophet, but in recognising her he muttered a 'hello' and went back to reading an article about goblin mucus.

"Hi." Selene returned. She almost always came here on Hogsmede weekends, except for a noted occasion when Cho had dragged her to Madam Puddifoot's to spy on Marietta and Marcus Flint. They never got much business here, due to the store being right at the end of the main street but occasionally McGonagall or Professor Flitwick would nip in to get a book on Charms or Transfiguration or whatever.

She didn't hear the door opening and shutting behind her, too engrossed in _One Million Ways To Annoy People._ Sometimes the reading material in here was a little strange but on the whole it was amazing.

"Why did the Weasel think we'd find her here?" Her brother's voice drifted between the shelves, uprooting her from the novel. Sighing slightly, Selene replaced the book and waited for Draco to appear. "A Malfoy wouldn't be seen dead in a shop like _this._" He said this last word with distaste, like it tasted bad.

"Come on, we'll never find her." Zabini. Damn no, he was always badgering her to date him or whatever. Anyone but him. "Let's go."

"No, she's here." Selene could almost hear Draco's lip curling as he spoke. "Selene? Selene?"

"Hi Draco." She walked out from between the high bookshelves, weaving her way past a teetering pile of books. "What's the matter?"

"Hello." Zabini spoke first, a sickly sweet smile on his face as he looked at Selene. "You're looking lovely today, may I say. Are you sure you won't date me?"

"Shut up Blaise." Draco snapped. "Selene, mother wanted to ask you some questions. Namely, why did Professor Snape place in detention and why did you not inform her?"

"I'll write." Selene ran a hand through her hair slowly, avoiding the rapturous gaze of Zabini. "Please stop looking at me like that. For the last time, no I won't go out with you. Who told you I was here Draco?"

"Oh, just Weasel one." Dismissed Draco. "I tell you what though, Weasel two's hair was extraordinarily blue today. Told you it was fun baiting Gryffindors."

"Fred's a dick, his brothers are really nice actually." Selene glared at Zabini, making him gulp visibly. "He'll have to come to me for the counter-enchantment, it's a spell I made up myself. Now can you leave me in peace?"

Grumbling, the two Slytherins wandered out again, closing the door. Selene lingered just for another few minutes, long enough to buy a book on Animagi.

The weather hadn't improved, and Selene wrapped her coat more tightly around her to try and shut out the bitterly cold air. It was only the middle of November for Helga's sake, it should at least be still vaguely warm, not cold enough to freeze the hind legs off a Hippogriff.

"Malfoy." Someone yelled through the sleet, disturbing her thoughts. "What the Godric did you do to my hair?"

"You'll have to ask nicer than that Weasley." Selene called back, tightening her scarf around her neck. "It's a personal spell of mine, doesn't come out unless you say 'please'."

"Bitch." Fred muttered, but he crossed the road. "Come on, counter spell me."

"I told you, you'll have to be nicer than that." Selene reminded, walking back in the direction of the castle. "Or your hair'll be like that for the next few years."

"You wouldn't." Fred said, aghast. "I can't walk around being a walking Ravenclaw supporter for the rest of my life!"

"Then say 'please'." Insisted Selene, deliberately taking a turn that'd take them past a whole lot of people. "Or your hair will be blue until the day you die, which hopefully will be soon."

Snickers started to erupt from all around them. They had reached the Hogwarts students. Fred started to panic; patting and smoothing his hair madly, as if touching your head would make the spell disappear.

"For Rowena's sake Malfoy, counter-enchant me now." Fred gritted his teeth and attempted to shrug off the colour of his hair as people started to full-out laugh.

"Planning to move to Ravenclaw Mr Weasley?" Professor Flitwick chuckled. "20 points to Ravenclaw Miss Malfoy, for excellent spell creation."

"Please." Fred blurted, practically praying that no one he worried about heard that. "Please, Selena or whatever the fuck your name is."

"Well done!" Selene said sarcastically, clapping her hands once and taking her wand out of her pocket. Fred's hair turned back to its normal red, and he raised an eyebrow as Selene re-pocketed her wand.

"Non-verbally?" Fred asked incredulously. "God, you really are a geek Malfoy."

"I try." Selene laughed inwardly. Two nil to her.

**Wow.**

**That had a lot of arguing, but I really wanted to use the hair colour idea. Next chapter will be the first task, which includes dragons, conversations and weirdness.**

**Please read and review, and remember that I need help on the drawing front still. If any of you guys out there have friends that's help, enlist them! Please!**

**Eleanor xxx**


	13. Chapter 12: The First Task

**Chapter 12 already?**

**Wow, time does fly; it's already the first task! Thanks to Kacey again, yes, I loved the hair colour idea personally, I wanted it to be green but it made more sense for her to turn it Ravenclaw blue instead. And I'm glad you like Lily. Also, maxie210, my backspace key breaks a lot too, I hammer the keyboard so hard sometimes! I'm glad you love my story. gingerduchirules, that's the general idea, thanks for liking the start as much as I did.**

**And, I don't own Harry Potter, however much I ask my mum to buy it for me. I do own Lily, Selene and Leanne though.**

Chapter 12: The First Task

Dragons.

That's the first thing Harry Potter thought on the morning of the 22nd November. Dragons, shortly flowed by a long string of swear words and wondering slightly why he was on the floor.

The answer? He'd fallen out of bed.

"Ow…" Rubbing his head, Harry sat up and groped for his glasses that were no doubt somewhere on his bedside table. Ron was still asleep, but snuffled slightly and turned over, cracking open his eyes a little and groaning as he remembered his obligation to show up today.

"Food…" He mumbled, and Harry restrained a laugh, remembering the fight they still upheld.

The common room was mercifully empty except for Lily, who was reading some type of zombie novel while attempting to complete her Potions essay. Looking up when Harry entered, she rolled her eyes and went back to haphazardly noting down the hundred uses of dragons blood. She was never much of a morning person, and he'd been informed by Katie Bell, who was a friend of Lily's, that she'd rip your throat out if you woke her before eight.

"Morning." She muttered, yawning. "Good luck today."

"Thanks Lily." Harry said gratefully, continuing on to the portrait hole. The corridor outside Gryffindor tower was also empty, but Harry wasn't taking any chances and hurried down the stairs before anyone could jump on him.

"Harry!" Hermione called, rushing across the Entrance hall. "I'm sorry, I was just in the library, checking up on some context for Professor McGonagall's essay. Are you okay? Did you sleep well, are you-"

"I'm fine 'Mione." Harry complained, sitting down at the table, ignoring the curious glances of the Hufflepuffs and Slytherins. Apparently, the Ravenclaws were trying not to take sides but evidently the majority of them supported Cedric.

"Eat Harry, you need to eat." Hermione pressed, shovelling huge amounts of bacon and egg onto his empty plate. "You'll need all of your strength for the task. Dragon's aren't the easiest opponents after all."

"Ok." Harry muttered, but he begrudgingly ate some bacon. "I am eating 'Mione." He continued, after swallowing.

"OI!" Pansy Parkinson was yelling at them again. "Having a nice time with your boyfriend Granger?"

"She's not my girlfriend!" Harry got ahead of Hermione this time.

"Yeah, right." The Slytherin girl drawled, sounding rather like Malfoy. "And I'm a Hufflepuff."

"Why are you sitting over there then Parkinson? Shouldn't you be over on the Hufflepuff table then?" Neither of them had noticed Lily walking into the hall. "Wow, I always thought you were dumb but this is just off the scale."

Glancing around to check that no teachers were watching, Lily stuck her middle finger up at Pansy, winking at Harry as she did. "Au revoir, mes amigos." She waved at Harry and Hermione before grabbing a few waffles and stalking back out of the hall, budging past a few Slytherin first years.

"Why isn't she in Slytherin?" Hermione wondered aloud, and not for the first time too. "She has all their traits, down to the ground."

"I think it's because she as a muggle-born father." Harry pondered. "That or because she's a blood-traitor."

That steered the conversation away from Harry's dietary habits for a while, and when they emerged out the other end it was almost ten o'clock. Much to Hermione's annoyance, Harry had only managed a few mouthfuls of breakfast and subsequently felt rather lethargic as they walked down towards the makeshift stadium that had been set up overnight.

"Good, you're here now Mr Potter." Professor McGonagall stood at the entrance to the stands, directing various students to their allocated stands. "Just into that stripy tent you can see. You can go with him Miss Granger; I understand Mr Diggory has plenty of friends in there already, Oh, and Mr Potter?" She added. "Good luck."

They walked towards the tent, Harry having the strange sensation that he was walking on clouds. His stomach felt like a thousand butterflies had randomly decided to spawn in there, like some sick Minecraft prank.

Taking a deep breath, Harry pushed back the thick tarpaulin walls of the tent.

"AH! Mr Potter!" Ludo Bagman rushed forward. "Now we're all ready to get going!"

Harry looked around the interior of the tent. Over in one corner was Krum, looking very surly and glowering at everyone who came too close to him. Fleur was in another, with Selene no less, and from what Harry could overhear Selene had been giving Fleur some help in defensive spells. Cedric Diggory was in the other corner, surrounded by his Hufflepuff friends who were all delightedly clapping him on the back and giving him words of encouragement.

"Harry, remember what I told you. The summoning charm needs _meaning_." Hermione reminded. "I'd better get going. All of them-" She gestured to Cedric's friends. "-are going now too. See you later."

As Hermione walked off, Harry was too preoccupied with worrying to hear a quiet voice greet him at first.

"Oh! Sorry Selene." Harry jumped about three feet into the air after hearing someone that wasn't Hermione talk to him.

"That's okay." To her credit, it didn't look like it'd bothered her much at all. "I just wanted to say good luck. I know Hermione's been helping you so I guess you have a lot more chance of winning than Cedric does."

"I'll have to tell her you said that." Harry grinned. "But from what I've heard you're not bad yourself."

Selene rolled her eyes, but not really in anger or annoyance. "Eurgh. Everyone thinks that, but I'm nothing special. It just kind of clicks with me." She snapped her fingers to illustrate the point. "If you want someone to gush over my abilities then ask Professor Flitwick. He's even gone so far as to try and secure me as the next Charms teacher here."

"Wouldn't you like to, you know, teach here?" Asked Harry curiously.

"I'm not really sure what I want to do with my life really. I've got a year and a half and I can always go work in Diagon Alley or something. Dad wants me to join the Ministry, but to be honest Fudge had always got on my nerves." Selene shrugged slightly, before smiling again. "Anyway, good luck."

She disappeared out of the tent flap, leaving a tent full of four nervous people and an over-excited ex-beater.

"Great! Shall we get started then?" Bagman asked, but didn't wait for an answer. Picking a bag up off a nearby table, he gave it a shake and it rattled slightly. "Your first task will be dragons. Isn't that exciting?"

Judging by the nonchalant looks on everyone's faces, Harry and Cedric hadn't been the only ones who were tipped off. Krum just stood there, looking moody, Fleur yawned and Cedric shifted from foot to foot, glancing at Harry quickly.

"Ladies first! Miss Delacour, if you please." Bagman brandished the little bag under Fleur's nose. Fleur exhaled, before dipping her hand in and drawing out a miniature model of a dragon.

It was a common Welsh green, Harry remembered that much from Hermione's revision sessions, and around it's neck was a silver number 1. She would be first.

"Excellent. Mr Krum…" Bagman prompted, as Krum withdrew a small yellow dragon. A Swedish short-snout, if memory served correctly. Krum was going third.

Cedric didn't need to be asked, and instead valiantly fished in the bag, eventually withdrawing a black dragon that was definitely the Chinese Fireball. So that only left…

"The Hungarian Horntail." Bagman said, as Harry stared in fascination down at the little dragon that was looking up at him with a curious expression. "You'll be last Mr Potter. Now we all know our order, I must go."

Selene's P.O.V.

Selene hurried up the steps to the 'Cedric' section of the stands, refraining from tripping over for once. Plonking herself down in the seat Cho had saved for her, she stretched out her long legs, leaning back in her seat slightly.

"How's Cedric?" Gushed Cho from next to her. "Is he nervous? Do you know what the task is?"

"I don't know Cho I didn't talk to him." Selene dismissed, sitting up straighter. "He was too busy being fawned over by his 'friends'."

"Oh." Cho's face fell and she anxiously looked out over the pitch. "Did he _look _okay though? He didn't faint? I knew I should've gone down to wish him luck."

"I'm sure he's fine." Selene reassured. In her mind, she was deciding on the best course of action. "Although he'll have to do without an extra supporter for today, I'm supporting Harry."

Silence fell in the vicinity directly surrounding Selene. Cho was looking at her aghast, Marietta had dropped her lipstick. Terry Boot, a Ravenclaw boy in her brother's year simply stood and stared at the outspoken girl.

"What? Oh Rowena, you're all supporting Cedric aren't you." If this was a cartoon, Selene thought, everyone would have been on the floor by now. "Really? We did say we weren't going to take sides." When no one answered, Selene shrugged and went back to tapping. "He has enough supporters anyway."

"You'd better go sit with your Gryffindor friends then." Someone said from behind her. "Do you have any friends in Gryffindor?"

"You're right." Selene stood up and squeezed past the hoards of people sitting down. "I'd better go. Does anyone know where Hermione Granger is? I'll see you lot at dinner."

Shaking her head slightly, Selene pushed her way into the place where all the Harry fans were sitting, which was considerably less full than back over the Cedric area, due to the fact that only one house had turned out to support him.

"Um, Hermione?" Selene noticed her friend sitting next to Parvati. "Can I sit there?" She gestured to the empty seat on the other side of Hermione.

Jumping slightly, Hermione looked around and spotted her. "Oh, Selene! Sure, but I thought you were supporting Cedric?"

Selene bit her lip and sat down, feeling slightly awkward. "No, he has way too many supporters already. We weren't going to take sides, but Cho wanted to support her boyfriend and everyone always follows her."

"That's nice." Parvati spoke unexpectedly. "I think my sister's told me about you. You play chaser, am I right?"

"Yep." Selene was slightly taken aback at the fact that someone noticed her on the Quidditch pitch. "I've been reserve for a few years though."

"You play Quidditch?" Hermione gaped, before composing herself. "I'm sorry, I just can't really visualise you on a broom."

Smiling wryly, Selene confided a piece of information not many knew. "I think father bought me onto the team. I wasn't great when I started but I've improved a lot. I'm afraid of heights, see?"

"What did he do, buy the entire Ravenclaw Quidditch team new brooms or something?" Hermione asked, as Krum walked into the stadium to rapturous applause.

"No, he already did that with the Slytherin team. He put a good word in for the father of the captain at the time, Dad has lots of friends in high places."

"Wow." Gasped Parvati. "Is your whole family like that, rich with time to waste?"

"Unfortunately yes." Selene admitted, watching Krum out of the corner of her eye. "Although it's mostly my father's family, you know Lily? Her mother is my aunt, although I haven't seen Dromeda since I was tiny. My mother and her don't get on."

"So, you're Lily's cousin?" Hermione looked behind her searching for Lily in the crowd behind her. "You two don't really look alike."

"As I've been told, I resemble my mother, and she was always the 'pretty one' of the Black family."

Their conversation was interrupted by two people sitting down behind them. "Greetings Hermione, Parvati." Fred Weasley said, yawning slightly. "Who's the cute girl?"

Selene choked suddenly, trying to comprehend what Fred had just said. He had obviously not recognised her, which was a feat in itself. "You know, you look better with blue hair." She reciprocated, turning around in her seat to smile sarcastically at him. "Never thought I'd hear those words come out of your mouth Weasley."

George burst into laughter after realising that Fred had called his worst enemy cute. "The look on your face!" He gasped for air, before descending into helpless hysteria. "You… called… a Malfoy… cute…!"

The look on Fred's face darkened instantly, as he recognised Selene. "Malfoy." He said coldly, ignoring his twin's laughter. "Why are you here?"

"I'm here to support Harry." Selene explained, turning back around to watch Krum's attempt. "Have a problem with that?"

"Yeah. We don't want slimy Malfoy's here, go buzz off with your little 'friends'. Don't know how you can call them friends though when they've only been brought through your family's bigoted money." Fred grimaced.

For once George seemed lost for words. "What the actual hell Fred?" George asked, looking at his twin in annoyance. "I've told you time and time again, give the poor girl a chance. If she wants to support Harry, she can." He shot Selene a grateful smile. "And we've discussed her family."

"Whatever." Muttered Fred, glaring at Selene. "Doesn't mean I want her to be here."

"You know what?" Selene stood up, ignoring Hermione's protests. "I don't want you to be here. What is your problem with me? I apologised, I really did. And you bloody ignored me. So why do you find the need to torment me constantly when you know I'm not like my dear brother because my brother wouldn't be friends with a muggle-born!"

Selene looked guiltily at Hermione, feeling ashamed that she had to use Hermione's blood status to prove a point. "Sorry Hermione."

Fred stood up, revealing that even at 5'8", Selene was only up to his shoulder. "Everyone knows you have no _real _friends. How else could you be friends with one of the most popular girls in the school and a bloody _part Veela _if your parents didn't buy their friendship? You're a socially talentless reject Malfoy, and I don't understand how Ravenclaw can put up with disgusting scum like you."

Her anger bubbling, George attempted to restrain Selene but before her could Selene had pulled out her wand and yelled "Avis!" Shortly followed by "Oppugno!"

Fred was attacked on all sides by strange little violet-coloured birds; that kept nipping and annoying him constantly. George descended into laughter again while Hermione couldn't help but clap at the excellent use of the charm.

When the birds had started to disappear, Fred grasped his wand and yelled "Furnunculus!"

Selene blocked this with a shield charm, and thought "Petrificus Totalus!"

Caught totally off guard, Fred fell backwards, his whole body frozen. George managed to catch him as Professor McGonagall walked over.

"Miss Malfoy! I am very ashamed of you! A Prefect, attacking another student! That'll be twenty points from Ravenclaw and a detention this evening. You too Mr Weasley!" She gestured to where Fred was looking very annoyed, lying on his back on the floor unable to do anything but glare. "Please revive him Miss Malfoy."

Thinking the counter-curse, Fred suddenly relaxed, staring daggers at Selene. Professor McGonagall looked pleasantly surprised at this and Hermione thought that the corners of her mouth twitched. "Twenty points from Gryffindor. Although, I must say that your accuracy and performance is astounding Miss Malfoy."

As McGonagall walked away, Fred turned to his twin. "I can't believe it, she attacks me, and we both lose points and gain detentions. She even got a compliment for _attacking me!_"

"Calm down mate, calm down." George patted his twin on the shoulder. "It's only one detention, I'm sure you can survive…"

**Famous Last Words!**

**Well, I'm sorry to say I might not update for a while. I'm going to the Hay Festival tomorrow and then I'm off to my grandparents etc. etc. The next chapter will be the joint detention, and a little bit of madness!**

**I've invented a very creative detention Fred and Selene will have to share, and a very important fact about Selene will be revealed. **

**So, don't kill me if the next chapter isn't up till next week, but if so I promise that the next chapter will kick everything off. If you hadn't gathered from this chapter that Fred's problem with Selene might run deeper than just a name, then you must be blind, or I didn't write it well enough. **

**I really want to get on to the Yule Ball, so there might be a slight time jump in the next few chapters. I've already worked out who Selene goes with so if anyone can guess I'll give them a shout out. Any ideas for the ball? Review and tell me; or PM me if you're lazy. I'm not Iron Man after all, I need help and songs! **

**Remember that I still need drawings! Review, please!**

**Eleanor xxx**


	14. Chapter 13: Please Don't Eat My Fingers

**Hello!**

**I'm sorry I've been A.W.O.L. for so long; I afraid real life does that to me! Thanks to Kacey; yay! Someone loves my chapters! I hope this is good enough as I promised. To maxie210, that point shall come up in the future, but it doesn't quite fit with this chapter unfortunately. .129; so do I but I promise that he's got more reasons to hate her than just her name. **

**I don't own Harry Potter!**

Chapter 13: Please Don't Eat My Fingers

Cho Chang wasn't in the Ravenclaw common room. She wasn't in the dormitory she shared with Selene and Marietta. She wasn't in the Great hall, wasn't outside, wasn't in the Entrance hall…

"Oh, in Helga's name Cho where the bloody hell are you?" Selene Malfoy swore lightly under her breath. "I have fifty-seven minutes and three seconds until I have to be Professor McGonagall's office, with Fred Weasley of all people. So please, be accessible."

Shouldering her extremely heavy bag, due to the amazing amount of books needed for Arithmancy, Selene smiled kindly at some second years who were looking at her like she had the Black Death. She had an unfortunate habit of muttering under her breath within earshot of people who could easily be forever scarred by her impatient musings. Luckily, Crabbe was out of therapy now.

"Selene." A cold voice called from behind her, making her whip around, almost whacking one of the unoffending second years. Hastily apologising, Selene shifted her bag onto her other arm and faced the speaker.

"Oh, hi Draco." Selene bit her lip. Awkward silences were more common between them now. Over the past four years, their relationship had started to crumble like cookies, and now even their shared summer holidays had the vague undertone of mistrust. They had good reason though.

"Mother wanted to ask you why you haven't contacted her yet." A simple sentence, so easily said, but the intonation of those different words strung together could be interpreted in so many different ways. It could be an accident, a mistake, a problem, a forgotten memory. Life isn't ever that simple for Selene though.

"Draco, please, can we have a conversation that doesn't include mother, or father, or our family? How are you? Is Pansy still stalking you? How is Qudditch coming along? Drake, just let me in." Selene pleaded, his old pet name slipping off her tongue.

Although his exterior was still frigid and stone-like, something a little like calmness passed over his face. Draco visibly relaxed, morphing into the person he was, rather than just the spoilt, cocky, snobbish boy.

"'Lene, I'm fine. Stop worrying about me." Draco protested, but his mouth twitched with the beginnings of a smile. Here, away from Crabbe, and Goyle, and Zabini, he was just plain old Draco Malfoy. "And Quidditch is crap, we can't even get out for practices anymore."

"Don't let father hear you say things like that." Teased Selene, grinning. "Not after…"

And just like that, their carefree, open mood was gone, evaporated like mere water. That memory weighed on Selene like a boulder, crushing her beneath it's weight. Her brother tensed again, forgetting everything good about their relationship and focusing on the bad. The smile was swept off his face, and he nodded curtly to his older sister. "I would advise writing to mother." He recommended, striding off without a backwards glance.

She just stood there, in the middle of the corridor, fighting back the tears that shouldn't, couldn't fall. Rule number three: Malfoy's don't cry. Rule five: Malfoy's don't make a scene in public. Tears were for shedding privately, away from the general population, and scenes were for the empty halls of the Manor.

"Hollow laughter in marble halls." Selene murmured, finding the scrap of courage that she possessed. It was only about the size of a tissue, barely enough to face her family again. She was dreading Christmas.

Flooded in presents, like any respectable pure-blood girl should be, but to be honest, her favourite Christmas had been when Cho invited her over. Happiness, laughter, even _home-cooked food!_ Her parents had been open, accepting of the strange, quiet girl that their daughter had brought back for Christmas like a stray puppy. Muggles were so… interesting. It had taken most of her intelligence to persuade her parents that she was at Fleurs' for Christmas.

It's suffice to say that her parents found out in the end. And that was the end of her being able to escape during the holidays. Well, officially escape…

A smile spread over Selene's face as she climbed the staircase. Yes, she was the kind of person who would show up to a detention half an hour early. Snape's face when she waited outside his dungeon for a whole hour was priceless. She wished she'd had one of those photo-thingy's that Cho had to take a picture. His beady black eyes, glaring down at the sister of his favourite pupil, innocently waiting for her detention to begin.

"Hollow laughter in marble halls, steps have been taken, a silent uproar." She continued, holding back that sudden feeling that she sometimes got in the common room, which Luna had affectionately christened a 'Musical Moment'.

Skipping up the last few stairs, Selene changed tack for a while and smirked inwardly as she imagined Professor McGonagall's expression when she turned up to a serious detention singing.

"Today is gonna be the day that they're gonna throw it back to you. By now you should've somehow realised what you gotta do. I don't believe that anybody feels the way I do, about you now." She sung quietly, doing a little twirl, her hair flying out. "Backbeat, the word is on the street that the fire in your heart is out. I'm sure you've heard it all before but you've never really had a doubt. I don't believe that anybody feels the way I do about you now."

As she launched into the bridge, Selene didn't notice that she'd let her mad twirling get a little out of hand and she spun right into a doorframe.

"Where did that come from?" Selene rubbed her skull, looking around as if someone had magically levitated the door into her path. "Okay… I'm just going to walk backwards now…"

One, two, three steps back. No, no one was along this corridor. Thanking whoever cared enough about her in heaven for her solitude, Selene picked up he bag from where it had dropped onto the floor and set off at a walk toward McGonagall's office, still anxiously looking around her every so often.

As the office came into view, Selene noticed a tall, red haired figure slouched outside against the wall. He didn't look up as Selene approached, instead preferring to participate in a staring contest with his trainers.

Sighing in relief that there wouldn't be another fight, at least for a little while, Selene absent-mindedly took out one of her Ancient Runes books and began to read, raising her eyebrows at some of the more absurd passages.

"Someone up there has it in for me." Selene muttered aloud, flicking the page with her finger. "Bet it's my grandmother."

"And why would that be?" Fred raised his head from his silent contest, glaring at Selene with out-of-place vigour.

"Ah, you know, she hated me." Selene flicked the page again, refusing to look at him. "Most people do, you know. You're not the only one."

She could just she his freckled face out of the corner of her eye, and she noticed that he blushed slightly at this comment. Thank Rowena for small mercies. At least he had some type of manners, but maybe she should get her mother to give him a crash-course.

Laughing lightly at this unfruitful idea, she replaced the book into her bursting bag and finally met his gaze, if reluctantly. "You're early." She remarked, resisting the urge to reach over and slap him. His face was covered in utmost dislike.

"So are you." He replied, placing one hand on his hip, trying to make himself look cool. "But unlike you, I have a life."

"Do you want me to hex you again?" Selene withdrew her wand from her pocket holding it in her left hand menacingly. "I've got quite good at some nasty hexes and Cho didn't want me try them out on her. You'd be perfect."

"You wouldn't be fast enough love." Fred said lazily, raising an eyebrow at her admittedly rubbish threat. "I did get an E in Charms."

"Well I got an O; eight O's to be exact." She countered, crossing her arms. "How many OWLs did you get? Three? Charms, Potions and Transfiguration?"

"How the hell do you know that?" Fred's sneer was swapped with complete surprise as he regarded Selene with thinly disguised amazement. "Have you been stalking me or something?"

Too late, one of her famous blushes surfaced. "NO!" Selene corrected, much too loudly. "No, I just… have a good memory. And your brother told me."

"Remind me to jinx him." He murmured, squashing a spider beneath his foot angrily. "He's way too friendly with the wrong type of people."

"Let me just point out, George isn't the only one who will at least talk to me. Hermione, she's really nice to me too. Ron, he's hilarious sometimes. Harry, admittedly obsessed with Cho but he still likes me enough to talk to me between lessons. And I remember Percy from last year, not much of a laugh but didn't suddenly squish me when he met me. So, in all fairness, you don't have a leg to stand on." Selene defended. "And for your information, the wrong kind of people for my family are the right kind of people for me."

Fred's face flushed an angry red colour and too late Selene realised her mistake. Tales had carried of Fred Weasley's feared temper, and the situations people had found themselves in after pissing him off. "My problem with you isn't just your bloody family princess, it goes a whole lot deeper than that you… you little…"

"Is there a problem?" Professor McGonagall's voice interrupted their argument, coldly looking down at the two people currently quarrelling outside her office.

"No Professor McGonagall, not at all." Selene quickly said, as Fred backed away, anger still evident from his shaking hands.

"You won't be having your detention here Mr Weasley, Miss Malfoy." Professor McGonagall closed the door behind her and beckoned the pair to follow her down the corridor.

"Where are we going?" Fred asked, coldly ignoring Selene.

"I have decided that it would be beneficial if you did something constructive for your detention, not just lines or cleaning." Professor McGonagall explained, leading them back down the stairs. "So, Hagrid says he needs help feeding the Thestrals tonight, which will be your punishment."

Selene's blood ran cold. She knew exactly what Thestral's ate, and it wasn't very pretty. Not for her, anyway. In order for then to be able to thrive naturally, they must eat Venomous Tarentaculars.

"Great, feeding invisible giant birds." Fred moaned sarcastically. "My idea of a night well spent."

"They're not invisible." Selene found herself saying despite herself. "Thestrals are visible to people who have seen death, and they're not birds they're in the same class as Dragons actually. They're very peaceful but they scare the living daylights out of me."

"That is correct Miss Malfoy. Can you see them?" Professor McGonagall enquired, continuing through the darkening courtyard.

"Yes Professor." Selene admitted, feeling the hot gaze of Fred Weasley on her. "I always have been able to, as long as I can remember."

Closing her eyes momentarily, Selene shook the memory of that night out of her mind, biting back the bile that always rose when she thought about it. So much blood… Sometimes memories were the hardest things to bear.

"Professor Sprout?" Professor McGonagall called out, shaking her back into the present tense. Selene narrowly avoided walking into a wall, but luckily in the evening it was much too dark for Fred to be able to see her blunder. "I have them!"

"Excellent, excellent." Professor Sprout bumbled out of a greenhouse, smiling as she walked towards them. "Who have you got for me today Minerva?"

McGonagall stepped backwards so Sprout could see Fred and Selene standing in the bright glare of Professor Sprout's lamp. "Fred Weasley and Selene Malfoy, Pomona. I trust you remember them?"

"I do." Sprout looked at Selene with an air of trying to forget an unpleasant memory. "May I say Minerva, I was hoping for people who could… cope?"

Selene blushed as she remembered just how bad one of her Herbology lessons had turned out. They had been doing something that was actually tedious rather than dangerous; repotting Mandrakes, when someone had "accidently" dropped one on her foot, causing her to swear loudly and send hers flying into Professor Sprout's head. That had been her first ever detention, which was admirable considering that it was in the fourth year.

"Mr Weasley is more than capable of handling this, even if his 'P' begs to differ, and I understand Miss Malfoy got a…" Professor McGonagall trailed off, turning to Selene with a questioning look.

"Um…" Selene looked at Professor Sprout for help, but the Professor just stood there waiting like Professor McGonagall. "A 'T' Professor McGonagall."

Fred broke into laughter at the disbelieving look on McGonagall's face and the expression of accustomed pain on Professor Sprout's. Selene clenched her fists and shot him a dirty look, resisting the urge to try out another curse on him. Somehow she felt it wouldn't go down well in the middle of a detention.

"Well." Professor McGonagall continued. "I'll leave you here. Their detention ends at nine tonight Pomona, can you please see them to their common rooms?"

McGonagall strode off through the night towards Hogwarts, leaving a still chuckling Fred and a scarlet Selene behind with an incredulous Professor Sprout. Shaking her head, Sprout led them through the benches and bushes in Greenhouse 4, stopping at a bed full of Venomous Tarentaculars.

"Right, Mr Weasley, you will need to take three Tarentaculars for each Thestral. There are currently 16 Thestrals in the Hogwarts heard so that'll make…" Professor Sprout began to count up on her fingers.

"48 Professor." Supplied Selene without thinking.

Fred was now looking at her with a mixture of amazement and repulsion. Professor Sprout nodded after a moments more thought. "That's right. Wheelbarrows on the left, Hagrid is down at his cabin when you're ready to feed the Thestrals. Can I leave you or will you-"

"We'll be fine." Fred insisted with a grin.

"If you're sure…" Professor Sprout looked like she wanted to say something but she refrained and walked back out of the greenhouse.

"Please don't eat my fingers…" Selene muttered as she extended a hand towards the quietly teething Tarentaculars. "Please, I quite like my fingers…"

"Are you talking to them?" Fred asked, looking bemused. "Sorry love, but I don't think they have ears."

"Don't call me 'love', or you'll have no ears." Picking up a plant and holding it well away from her, Selene gingerly dropped it into the empty wheelbarrow. "And possibly no tongue as well."

"And how would that benefit you?" Fred asked, taking the opportunity to slouch against the greenhouse wall. "Angelina would be pissed for one thing, and she's really scary, father to dig you out or not."

"Call me when you find that father because I could do with a new one." Selene dug in her pocket for her wand and began to levitate the Tarentaculars into the wheelbarrow. Amid all the confusion, neither Professor had mentioned that they couldn't use magic. "Now can you actually do something? I have lots of homework and I want to get it done before midnight."

"You actually do homework?" Fred joked, but the joke fell flat when Selene nodded like he was mad. "Um… okay. Just trying to diffuse the tension."

"Shut up." Selene murmured, counting the Tarentaculars. "And please, I'm not kidding when I say I have lots of homework. Professor Flitwick always finds the need to give me more than everyone else. And Fleur'll wake me up at about twenty past six tomorrow wanting to go stalk Krum or something."

"You stalk Krum?"

"No, but loads of girls in our year do and Fleur likes to show them up. Thinks it's fun. Personally I don't see the point but… Urgh, can you actually do anything or are you stuck in that position?"

"It's fun watching a Malfoy work." Fred smirked, ignoring the temperature rise in the greenhouse and dismissing it as a fluke. "Didn't you have a house elf? Who does the cleaning now?"

"If I told you, you wouldn't believe me."

"Try me, you'll find I am extremely bored and I need something to pass the time."

Selene dropped her concentration and the Tarentacular she was levitating thumped down back into the flowerbed. "If you're bored, then do something. I'm the one doing all the work here, so if you think you can just kick back and relax you're mistaken. Unlike you, I have friends I want to get back to and homework I need to complete."

"Ah, I thought we'd covered this, they're not your friends." Fred said, smirking again. "Did your precious daddy buy them for you? Or did you somehow buy them yourself? Or maybe they're just friends with you for your money; although why anyone would want filthy money like yours I have no idea."

Selene whipped around so she was facing them. Raising her had, she slapped him across the face, feeling a stinging sensation flood her palm. It left a satisfying red mark on his cheek though, and Fred was too shocked to retaliate.

"Don't you dare insult my friends." She shook with anger, grasping her wand and pointing it at Fred menacingly. "Ever. Again."

Before she could question herself, Selene had grabbed her bag and walked out of the greenhouse, tears spilling down her face. She turned around just long enough to lock his legs together – he should try picking Tarentaculars with stuck-together legs.

She'd walked out of a detention. Not once in her life had she been so deliberately rude and that was the first time she'd lost her temper in front of someone. Selene wiped the tears off her face and started to walk back toward the castle, severely regretting her decision. She couldn't walk back in there, not after cursing and slapping Fred. Disappointment won out over social suicide this time, she wouldn't let him see that he'd got to her.

Quietly slipping through the Entrance Hall, Selene began to trudge up the enormous amount of stairs that were between her and Ravenclaw tower. There was no one around at this time, they were all in detention, in the common rooms or sneaking around some corridor.

"Three of hearts, knave of spades, queen of clubs, ten of diamonds…" Someone was muttering fro the corridor to the left of Selene. "Three of sadness, knave of anger, queen of fury, ten of pain…"

Professor Trelawney walked out of the dark corridor, muttering and reshuffling the cards, but she looked up when Selene approached and a slightly dreamy smile drifted over her face.

"My dear, I wondered when I shall be seeing you. My crystal ball foretold it, but predictions are never clear enough. Can you ask your dear friend Miss Edgecombe to check her homework? I fear it will be wrong when I come to mark it. But anyway, what can I do for you my dear?"

"Um… nothing Professor." Selene answered hastily. She'd taken Divination for three years, but it wasn't mandatory for any career choice she could take despite an 'A' in her OWL. So, much to Marietta's dismay, she was the only one in their group left taking Divination onto NEWT level. "I'll tell Marietta though."

"Yet I sense there is something…" Professor Trelawney, without warning, reached out and grabbed Selene's hand. "A bet… a bet that will change something for you. In your near future dear, a crossroads. Two choices. Then I see a problem, there will not be an easy solution. I fear that there will be sadness, despair even, for one of your close friends. Remember that sometimes friendship means more than gold, my dear."

"Um… okay." She had learnt a long time ago to just accept whatever Trelawney put on your plate and later ignore it, it was doubtful that the Professor actually possessed the 'Inner Eye'.

As Trelawney shuffled off down the hallway, still flicking through the pack of playing cards and muttering, Selene took the chance and set off at a brisk walk in the opposite direction. Maybe she could convince Cho that the detention had been cancelled/postponed?

Reaching the portrait of Rowena Ravenclaw that hung over the portrait hole, Selene reached out a hand and knocked twice on the wall next to it. Rowena Ravenclaw turned to face her, a small smile on her face. This portrait was known to be quite isolated from the rest, but Ravenclaw sometimes enjoyed a chat with some of her older students.

"My dear." Ravenclaw smiled down at Selene, nodding as she did. "It has been a while. Are you well? How are your studies going?"

"They're going very well thank you. I am having a little trouble in Potions but that is easily sorted. I just need to revise some more techniques."

Rowena nodded again, and adopted a pondering expression like she often did. "Now, my dear, when is a door not a door?"

"When it's ajar." Selene answered with ease, some muggles had changed the old riddle into a joke and Cho had introduced it to her over last Christmas. It wasn't hard to forget, not after she'd actually understood the intonation needed to tell the joke.

"Very good." The portrait swung forward to reveal the calm, peaceful aura of the Ravenclaw common room, bedecked in blue and bronze hangings. It was silent, save for a few chatters here and there, but that was generally accepted as a sign that everyone was working or was absorbed in something interesting.

Climbing through the portrait hole, Selene made a beeline for the sofas where Cho, Marietta and some of her other Ravenclaw friends were clustered around a pile of Witch Weekly magazines.

Cho looked out as she approached, and smiled. "Hi Sel! Come on, take a magazine, we're trying out some of the quizzes!"

Silently thanking Rowena that Cho didn't ask her why she was early, Selene took a dramatic break from tradition and picked up a magazine, curling up between Marietta and a fifth year girl called Lottie.

"What Quidditch position should you date?" Selene read out, lip curling slightly as she did. She'd never had any patience for any type of quiz, but the Quidditch ones annoyed her the most. "Oh well. Question 1: Cookie Dough or Marzipan?"

There was no question there, as Selene circled 'Cookie Dough' with her quill. Question 2: My Charm Romance or One Spell? Nah, had to My Charm Romance, the best Wizarding band in her opinion. Cho glanced over her shoulder and made a little sound of disgust at her choice. Cho was obsessed with One Spell.

Selene bolted through the questions, not really caring whatever the outcome was. Question 3: Firewhiskey or Butterbeer, answering Butterbeer without a second thought. Question 4: Charms or Transfiguration, and Selene hastily circled Charms, even though Transfiguration was slightly more interesting for her, and McGonagall never gave her extra homework.

There were twenty questions overall, and each question gave you two or three choices depending on the diversity of the topic it covered. Selene dropped her quill onto the table as the magical magazine began to count up her score. Cho glanced over Selene's shoulder and surveyed her answers. "I got Seeker." She explained, blushing slightly. "Which is good, I guess, because Cedric plays Seeker."

When Selene looked back at the magazine after reading Cho's score for 'What magical food item are you?' (Cho scored Chocolate Frog). Vaguely expecting it to turn out something resembling Keeper or Chaser, she was mildly taken aback when it came up with Beater.

"Now we can set you up with Poe!" Lottie called out, pointing excitedly at the score. "I always thought he had a thing for you!"

"At least Zabini doesn't play Quidditch." Selene muttered, unknowingly resigning herself to a jam-packed night of Witch Weekly quizzes and giggling. "But Poe's a troll, almost as bad as Flint."

"I know! I know!" Cho perked up instantly as she recognised the change of topic. "Let's set you up with George Weasley!"

**This chapter is over 4000 words, so I hope you're happy with it. This is officially the longest chapter so far! Go me!**

**I'm sorry I made you wait for this chapter, but I hope it was worth it. The whole idea of 'Let's set you up with George Weasley' is a little bit weird but when his friends get in on it… well, no spoilers here!**

**I'm trying a few different things out for the next chapter, so please review and give me some suggestions! Also, Fred was supposed to be a bit less mean in this chapter, but I couldn't resist having Selene actually slap him. The opportunity was just too great!**

**Please, as always, read and review! Let me know what you think about Trelawney's weird prediction…**

**And, as always, I still need pictures!**

**Eleanor xxx**


	15. Chapter 14: The Memory Game

**Hi! This chapter is for my excellent reviewers:**

**Maxie210, I plan to! And I'm glad you think I'm the best author ever!**

**Kacey, yeah, she was meant to be a little mean, but take it from me, she didn't mean to be. She just god pissed at him, I think I'd react the same way. And yay! It was worth the wait!**

**Guest no. 1, I'll try to add some more 'Selene past' and 'Fred stuff' in here for you; hope you like it!**

**Guest no.2: You will find out who she saw die soon, but by soon I only mean definitely before chapter 30. If there is a chapter 30. There should be.**

**This includes some first person POV, so the first POV change is where it skips from 3****rd**** person to 1****st****. Then it goes back to 3****rd**** the next POV change.**

**And from last chapter, the song lyrics belong to Pink Floyd and Oasis, not me! **

**I don't own, never will own, maybe should own Harry Potter. If I did then Selene Malfoy wouldn't be an OC, she'd be an actual character. I think she deserves it, with all she has to go through.**

Chapter 14: The Memory Game

_Dear Diary,_

_ I really don't know what the bloody hell is going on nowadays. Really, I don't. Is it just something about sixth year that screws you up? Or is it just me whose life is going haywire? I'm betting on the latter as no one else seems like they're having a mental breakdown._

_ Am I even having a mental breakdown? God, I don't know what's wrong with me nowadays. One minute I'm levitating dangerous plants into wheelbarrows and the next I'm storming out of greenhouse severely pissed off at someone. And that someone's name shall not be disclosed here because I think that if I write it then I'll tear this notebook into a million tiny scraps of paper._

_ I slapped him._

_ I never slap people! What the hell? Actually, I never slapped anyone until last night, but to be fair I think he deserved it._

_ Oh, who am I kidding, I'll probably end up apologising before the day is out, I have no self-esteem and I can't hold a grudge. If I wasn't in Ravenclaw I'd probably be a reject with no friends, which is exactly what HE thinks. And as much as I want to avoid him, now my friends are going to try and set me up with his twin brother. No, no, he's just a friend but Cho just won't listen, will she? Ever. _

_ Onto a lighter subject, it's only a few weeks until Christmas so CHRISTMAS SHOPPING! For lots more people than normal too, Hermione and Ron and Harry and George etc. Even Dobby! _

_ Dobby is now working at Hogwarts! Isn't that great? I always hoped he'd get a better job than just foot servant at the Manor, and that elf really deserves it. He was kind enough to tell me as well; in fact he went out of his way to talk to me in Ravenclaw tower one night last month. _

_ I need to write to my mother; I think it'd be better for both me and Draco that way. _

Selene woke up to the sound of the Wizarding Wireless.

This wasn't uncommon for a Saturday morning, in fact it was a common ritual for Cho to 'get ready' to the sounds of whatever they decided to play that day.

And when 'get ready' meant thorough outfit planning, full makeup, hair styling and accessory choosing, it always seemed to start at about 5 in the morning.

"Cho…" Selene pulled the covers over her face and tried to ignore the music that was pounding throughout the dormitory. "Please consider my eardrums…"

"Oh, Selene…" Cho threw the covers off her friend, smiling sweetly. "You know how long it takes to get ready on a Saturday morning. Hours, hours sweetie. You can't slack off."

"And as phase 1 of 'Operation Selorge' begins today, we need even more time to work on you!" Marietta poked her head into the frame, her normally curly hair currently being curled by lots and lots of muggle curling irons. "Come on! Beauty doesn't wait for anyone!"

"Except me." Selene tugged the covers back across herself, closing her eyes and throwing a pillow across her ears. "It's half-past four _in the morning_. Let me sleep."

The two girls shared a look and simultaneously yanked the covers onto the floor, and Marietta wrestled the pillow off Selene's face while Cho pulled her friend to standing height, noting with distaste the pyjamas.

"Sweetie, what have we all told you about wearing _those_." Cho looked pointedly at the Oasis top. "And that's a t-shirt, I thought we covered this when I brought them for you."

"Oh well." Selene yawned, not willing to put up much of a fight. "Just… get on with it." Maybe if she was lucky she'd be in time for breakfast.

Promptly Cho jumped across to Selene's trunk, which was amazingly tidy and packed with books and not many clothes. Tipping the books out, ignoring Selene's plea, she rifled through the few clothes that she owned that weren't uniform.

Marietta, with the help of Lottie, who had miraculously appeared from nowhere, began to decide on her makeup. Selene studiously ignored all of this, and tried to get to sleep in the middle of the floor. Unfortunately, floors aren't the most comfortable surfaces, but you'll sleep just about anywhere at four in the morning.

"Thank Rowena!" Cho yelled, holding up a purple tank top that Selene owned. "Something wearable! How long have you had this?"

"Urm… Mother got it for me over the summer."

Cho knew better than to argue with her friend, but she was still pretty annoyed that Selene owned all of this pretty clothing and she never brought any attention to it at all, preferring to wear jeans and jumpers on her weekends. It was lucky that her mother had never cropped up at the school on these days; everyone knew very well what she'd think of her daughter wearing muggle clothing.

"Well, you don't have anything that goes with it… Yes! I know!" Cho leaped to her bed, picking up a horribly short skirt that was blue and sparkly. "This, the tank top, some purple leggings and-"

"Can you cope with heels today?" Lottie cut in, holding up a pair. "These would look lovely on you. We have the same shoe size, don't we?"

"Yeah." Marietta cut in, holding up what looked like a portable torture chamber. "Shall we start?"

Throughout the next two hours, Selene was poked with mascara applicators, prodded with various makeup containers and her hair was changed every ten minutes. Straight to curly to wavy to ponytail…

Finally, after what seemed like years, she emerged out the other end looking like she'd been stuck through a converted carwash.

Her hair was straight, after way too much deliberation, and it hung almost half-way down her back, her lips had been covered in pink lipstick and a similar shade of blusher had been applied on her face. The skirt didn't look too bad, it was about knee length, and Selene suspected that Cho had placed a lengthening charm on it.

"Can I go down for breakfast now?" Said Selene hopefully, feeling her stomach beginning to complain.

"No, you can wait for another half an hour, can't you?" Cho insisted, walking into the bathroom. "I want to see _everyone's _reaction, especially George's!"

Over the past week, they had been trying to coach Selene round to the setting up idea, and it hadn't been successful. Yes, she caught George looking at her sometimes in Charms, but it was because he was trying to piss off Fred, not because he found her attractive or anything. Now that would be weird. She thought as him as her friend, no more.

But they couldn't take a bloody hint, and a few days of this shit with no reaction would tone it down a bit, if not completely.

The reaction was as Selene expected in the common room, gaping and she swore Michael Corner wolf-whistled. Crossing her arms over her chest, she ignored the gazes of her fellow Ravenclaws and focused on making it to the portrait hole without fainting in shyness. She could feel her face turning a beetroot colour.

"That wasn't so bad!" Cho said, and Selene's glare just made her laugh. "No, seriously, that wasn't as bad as I could've been."

"We should have done this last year!" Marietta added, nodding to a pair of gawking Gryffindor second-years as they walked towards the main staircase. "Why didn't we?"

Fred's P.O.V.

"What you thinking about Forge?" George asked me as we made our way down to the Great Hall for the sacred time that was breakfast.

"Revenge." I answered, speaking for only myself as I did. I still couldn't understand why she'd slapped me. One minute I was doing fine, not yelling at her or jinxing her or trying out my new stash of fireworks, and the next I'm left in a greenhouse with my legs locked together and a stinging cheek.

George rolled his eyes, which made me frown. I couldn't understand why he even liked that girl. One, she was a Malfoy, two, she was a _Ravenclaw_, which made her a nerd and above all the pranking jazz, three she was a Prefect, and could give me a detention whenever she wanted. I tried not to hang around Prefects too much, Percy being an exception as he's (somehow) my brother.

"What were you taunting her about this time?" George asked, as we made a beeline for the stairs, expertly swerving to avoid a group of third years.

"Nothing." I lied, but George can annoyingly tell whenever I lie. "Argh, okay, I was just saying that it was a bit weird how she hangs around with all those girls who are giggly and obnoxious-"

"-Not to mention annoying." George finished for me, with a knowing grin. "I don't know either; she's really nice and actually turned a blind eye when she saw me pranking Snape a couple weeks ago.

Now that was surprising. I'd never managed to talk someone into letting me off detention before, Prefect or Professor. "Wow."

"I know. I think someone might have confunded her." George admitted, as we started to walk into the Great Hall. "Yay! PANCAKES!"

One of the many weird things about my twin brother is his obsession over pancakes. And treacle tart. And many other kinds of food. Don't get me wrong, I love food too, but I don't instantly rush into action every time I see a pancake.

"AND BACON!" I noticed, running over to Gryffindor table, sitting between Ange and George. "Hi Ange, pass the bacon?"

There are food priorities in this world. First come chocolate, then bacon, then chocolate and bacon. Nobody can refuse bacon.

"Want some Ange?" George wafted the plate of bacon temptingly under her nose, grinning like a madman. "Bacon…"

"No thanks." Ange smiled, but took some toast instead.

My mouth dropped open. She had just committed the ultimate blasphemy. She had _declined bacon!_ She had destroyed her flawless reputation, ripped it up and drowned it in a swimming pool. I was just about to tell her this, when a group of girls walked through the doors and into the Great Hall.

Cho was there, and Harry was gawping at her like he always was. He needed to learn discretion, or he'd be another Charlie. Marietta was there too, cute but not on the same level as Cho. But my attention was caught on the other girl.

She was tall, slender and pretty, with long brown hair but a slightly nervous expression. She was wearing a tight tank top that was brightly coloured, and a skirt. Okay, she was hot. But that wasn't the point. If I started openly flirting with her next to my girlfriend… it wasn't worth thinking about.

With a little jolt, I realised she was Selene. Wait, had I just admitted to myself that my so-called worst enemy was hot. Damn. Damn damnit damn those bloody unicorn ponies. Wait, unicorn ponies?

"Hey, George, I just had-"I looked around for my twin, he'd disappeared during my 'inner monologue' moment. That was the last time I had one of those then.

Turning to Angelina, she shook her head and resumed nibbling on her toast. Boring woman, only ate bacon if it was before a Quidditch match. Something about a diet. Stupid really, you don't need to diet if you're only a size eight.

"Where is he?" I asked, feeling slightly put out at George's lack of twinly spirit. It was annoying, having someone who insists on going A.W.O.L. on you.

"Over there." Ange smirked, gesturing to the Ravenclaw table. "Didn't waste any time, did he?"

"Huh? What?" I immediately looked behind me, in the approximate direction of the Ravenclaws. Sure enough, my dear twin brother was where Angelina told me, but that didn't stop me spitting out my bacon all over Lee.

Lee looked at me, disgusted, but he'd learnt long ago not to argue with me about anything concerning bacon, as he'd lose. In third year, he and George actually made me a badge that read _"King of Bacon"_.

George was sitting between Cho and Marietta, flirting, yes, flirting, with Selene. He was flirting with Draco Malfoy's sister. He couldn't do that! One thing, she probably felt above us, next her parents were massive dickheads, she was way too pretty for him, she spent her free time reading, she's a prefect- so if her and George get involved I can wave goodbye to pranking – and I don't really want to see her any more than necessary.

"I need to stop him." I felt my legs carrying me towards the Ravenclaws, but my brain just wanted me to sit down and eat bacon, like any normal person would do. "He can't date her! She's a Malfoy!" I added, more to myself than anyone else.

Selene's P.O.V.

"So, do you normally go out like this, or is it a one off?" George asked, taking a pancake off Cho silently.

Selene laughed, shaking her head much to Marietta's annoyance. "I've been up since half-four, getting stabbed with various torture instruments."

He raised an eyebrow at this, looking around at the small group. "And by "torture instruments" I take it you mean makeup and hair straighteners?"

"Right first time." She rolled her eyes and massaged her ankles slightly; they still ached from those bloody shoes. Last time she _ever _would wear heels. EVER. And she truly meant it this time.

"Well, you look pretty; you should let them attack you more often." George smiled at Selene, which made her feel slightly uncomfortable. Had he been flirting with her this whole time? Geez, she was never going to get a grip on all this girly stuff. Had she been flirting back? She didn't want to be annoying or overly idiotic.

"Hi George." Selene looked up from her breakfast to see Fred Weasley. She could of hugged him, getting her out of a situation like that. But she wouldn't, because he didn't like her, and hugging him would just be weird. Very weird. She didn't want to think about it, or she would become about five times as messed up than she already was.

"I was just over here, talking to these lovely girls." George winked at Selene, and her stomach dropped in shock. What. The. Hell? "Some more lovely than others, I might add."

Fred's smile dropped as he looked coldly at Selene. So much for not screwing up. It is extremely hard to ignore someone when they won't leave you alone. If it wasn't the Great Hall, then it was glares in the corridor, stares in Charms and DADA and general annoyance.

"I see." Fred said, with about as much conviction as a garden fence. "I didn't know you had a thing for geeks, George."

To anyone else, this would be a compliment or at least not a horrid insult, but Selene saw this as just another attack. Which is good, because to Fred it was. Selene forced herself to meet his eyes, and regretted it almost immediately.

_It's a dark room._

_ The only light comes from the moon that hangs in the sky, a million miles away. Everything seems a million miles away from here. Everything is._

She came back to the real world with a gasp, unwilling to remember that night. If she did then… she wasn't sure. Would she break down? Be able to get past it like it was just another letter from her parents, just another day in the weird world of Selene Malfoy?

Her shock was interrupted by a loud hoot as a tawny owl came to rest in front of her, nuzzling its little head into the palm of Selene's hand. There was a letter tied around its left leg.

"Thanks Cress." Selene stroked the feathers of her owl absent-mindedly as she detached the letter, feeding Cress a piece of waffle before watching her fly off to the Owlery.

"I need to go and read this." Selene stood up, smiling at George apologetically before leaving the hall as fast as she could without tripping over.

Instantly knowing where she needed to go for a letter like this, after such a recollection, Selene walked up three flights of stairs, making a beeline for an empty classroom that was only used sometimes for practical Defence lessons

Selene traced the elegant letters of her mother's best pureblood script warily, knowing very well what the words inside might entail. The neater the handwriting; the bigger the news.

_My dearest daughter,_

_ Your father and I are very well thank you, and the Manor is flourishing even without you and your brother here to keep an eye on parts of the grounds for us._

_ But, unfortunately, I cannot waste a sheet of parchment with pleasantries, as much as it may be beneficial my dear. Firstly, thank you for explaining the situation with your detention with me, and I assure you no harm will come to you in Potions now. However, I must advise you to keep away from trouble, as our reputation and our family name cannot be sullied by the doings of a few._

_ No, what I have written to tell you; is that something big is happening in our world. Something that we must all prepare for, and something I know your father has looked forward to for many years. We must all stay vigilant, and keep away from the scum of the Wizarding World. _

_ I cannot write more here, but your father will no doubt explain it to you in more detail when you are home for Christmas. I dearly miss you, and I wish you luck in your studies._

_ I am also writing to Draco about this, and as such it is not essential for you to alert him to this letter; in fact it's important that the contents of this stay between our family._

_ Your loving _

_ Mother_

Something was bad. Something was going wrong; Selene could see it from the angled slope of her letters. And the secrecy wasn't hard to read, something was wrong with her father, something that couldn't be put in words for fear of interception.

Biting her lip, Selene rested her head against the stone wall of the classroom, closing her eyes as if not seeing the world might make it go away. But just sitting there, alone except for her thoughts and the less-than-comforting words of the letter, the earlier memory came back full force.

_It's a dark room._

_ The only light comes from the moon that hangs in the sky, a million miles away. Everything seems a million miles away from here, everything is._

_ There are two men, standing in the room, wands out and pointing right at me. I sob, knowing that they don't have long, not if they are here. The taller one sees I am just a little girl, and nudges the other, muttering something indistinguishable._

_ I can't meet their eyes. I hang my head, not wanting to see their faces in the pale moonlight. It'll just make it harder for me. _

_ I know their names, their family, their ages. But I don't _know _them, not in the proper sense. And I'm wondering what I'm doing here, standing in a middle of a room, trying to find words that'll explain what will happen if they don't leave now. Because they have to leave now._

_ But what will happen if I warn them? Will they know? Will they kill me, too? I'm disposable, only here because my aunt thought it'd be 'educational' for me to see how they do it. _

_ How they kill people._

_ Choking, I bury my head in my hands, silently willing my voice to speak, my mouth to work. I don't want to watch this; I don't want this to happen. I never wanted anything to happen to these two people. To no-one. No-one at all._

_ But I'm just no-one; and no-one will listen to me. My mother will pretend, nod and stroke my hair as I cry. But it won't happen. She won't make it stop, however much I plead. _

_ The door thumps open and my heart stops, my breath catches in my throat. He's here. I didn't warn them. My stomach flops and I want nothing more than to just run, run until I'm home and there'll be chocolate brownies and warm hugs and no mention of what has happened here. I'll be safe._

_ They're talking now, throwing insults backwards and forwards; like a malicious game of ping pong. My hands slowly rise to cover my ears; I want to drown them out, I want to be detached from this. I don't want to be here. _

_ Screaming. Unearthly screaming. I can't block it out – it's too real to be a dream. Tears pour down my face as I raise my eyes, willing myself to be strong, help those poor people, be the girl my mother believes I will become one day._

_ Blood pours from the gash in his side, scarlet staining his shirt as the other stands, helplessly tied up in duelling one of my father's friends. I want to help, I have to, but my legs feel like lead weights and I'm numb to the core, watching the life drain out of this man, the man I failed to save._

_ His face is gashed, his left cheek a bloody hole that gapes at me openly. His arm hangs awkwardly, crushed under the weight of a well-placed curse. I want to vomit, looking at the horrific injuries he's sustaining. But he's coping, somehow. He's doing better than I am, and I'm not covered in my own blood._

_ He's dying. He knows that. He's done for. No way out. _

_ And as his final moment comes, his eyes find mine. I can feel myself screaming now, maybe I was always screaming. But his eyes aren't dark, aren't devoid of hope and light like so many others. They shine. They light up more than just the room, they light up me too. And they're so full of hope, and love, and pain, that I wonder who will miss him. Pitying eyes._

_ "I forgive you." He mouths, and the light switches off. _

**Wow, that was a bit weird. It wasn't meant to be that graphic, so I apologise if it was a bit of a shock. **

**But I enjoyed that chapter more than the previous ones, for one it has more backstory and it also starts up Fred's feelings for Selene, but unfortunately he won't recognise them for a while yet.**

**Next chapter: We find out about the Yule Ball!**

**I hope you enjoyed this as much as I did. Next one should be up by Friday if I'm optimistic.**

**See ya,**

**Eleanor**


	16. Chapter 15: Forgive And Forget

**Hello!**

**This has passed 3000 views hooray! I've also decided to give a little prize (in the form of a one-shot of your choice) for the thirtieth reviewer! And with 15 favourites and 20 followers, I thank you all too! And if you're the thirtieth to review, I'll contact you on Pm (or if you're a Guest, in the next Author's note) and you can tell me what you want me to do a one-shot of for you. It can be from this story or not, I don't really care. But it'll probably be longer if it's from this storyline.**

**Thank you to bellatrixD – I like him like that too, but I'm borderline insane so you're not out of the woods yet :D. Kacey – again, thanks for your review and I hope the Yule Ball is worth it for you too. lightbabe, Fred's acting like 16 months not sixteen years, he's throwing the toys out of the pram (do wizards have prams?).**

**Disclaimer: Damn it! I don't own Harry Potter! I only own everyone who doesn't appear in canon - I'm going to add so many little, insignificant OC's that don't matter, it's easier to just say that. For one thing, they don't show enough Ravenclaws! That's why Lottie, the fifth year cropped up, she might not do again.**

Chapter 15: Forgive and Forget

Life can never be easy. No, it just can't. It can't be linear, where your only worries are how much cookie dough ice cream you've ingested and whether your Ancient Runes essay is good enough. And it's pointless trying to make it so.

Because when you've eaten a _lot _of cookie dough ice cream, no matter how young or old you are, it doesn't matter. Life's still a bitch, and time continues to slip away from you.

Yesterday you might have been laughing with your best friends about everything under the sun, and today you might be completely on your own while it persists to rain. The basic difference that happens, day to day, isn't unnoticeable. In fact it's the complete opposite.

Selene pushed her hair out of her face carefully, frowning down at the huge test Professor Moody had placed in front of her.

Fifty questions; and an hour to answer them in. What were they trying to do, kill her? Extract the brain power out of children and squeeze it all into a paint tube? Blow up the universe?

"Bloody hell." George swore from next to her. "What is he trying to do, kill us?"

His question was so close to her train of thought that she had to bit back a grin. "I really don't know, but the question material is quite short, small topic intervals. We should be alright, if you don't get distracted."

If the glazed look on George's face was any indication, then he had stopped listening a long time ago. Rolling her eyes, Selene flipped over the test paper and started to work her way through the piles of questions.

It worked like clockwork, mechanically reading the question and scribbling the answer down, ignoring everyone else in the room. Well, trying to anyway. Trying is sometimes the best you can do in the circumstances.

She had reached question six (Name the three darkest wizards on the twentieth century, in chronological order, and describe their defeat) when she became aware of someone throwing pieces of paper at her.

Gritting her teeth, Selene pushed her hair over her face again, obscuring the room from view. Grindelwald – defeated by Dumbledore in 1945, Liana Redwood – killed by a rampaging ogre in 1973, and Lord Voldemort – destroyed by a rebounding killing curse in 1981. Another paper ball hit her.

Question seven; describe the affects of the Cruciatus Curse. Another bit of paper. Uncontrollable pain, inability to m-

"Could you please stop that?" Selene muttered, looking up from her sheet to glare at George.

"Stop what?" George's brow furrowed in confusion.

"Oh, sorry." Selene apologised, turning back to the paper. Inability to move. Question eight: What is an inferius and how do you destroy it?

As yet another paper ball hit her in the back; Selene looked behind her for the source of the aggravation. A couple of people were sitting directly behind her and George; she identified them loosely as Alicia Spinnet and Roger Davies. Davies glanced up, and noticing her staring, glared at her with extreme proficiency.

Behind them though, were Fred and Sara Fawcett. Yes, it had been Fred who was casually chucking scraps of paper at her. She shouldn't be too surprised; he hadn't been able to leave her alone lately.

Now knowing who was persisting to annoy her, Selene was able to concentrate on her work for the rest of the lesson, now matter how annoyed she might be at his constant persistence.

Catching up with Cho after Moody had collected up the test papers, Selene started to ask her whether she had noticed Fred flicking bits of paper at her, but Cho, as always, jumped the gun.

"Fred Weasley was chucking bits of paper at you." She said, much too calmly for someone whose friend had just been tormented for a whole hour. "That's good, that means George likes you."

"Um, sorry, but how do those two relate?" Asked Selene, raising an eyebrow.

Cho groaned audibly and stopped in the middle of the corridor, grabbing Selene by the arm. "Sometimes, I wonder how you are in Ravenclaw. It _means_ that Fred has spotted George's obvious liking to you and wants to ask you how you did it." She explained slowly, as if talking to a wayward child. "Sweetie, we might need to give you another crash course in all of this."

"No, no, I'm fine." She replied hastily, wanting to keep her sanity for as long as possible. "I was just a bit confused, that's all. What do you have now?"

Cho didn't look convinced, but she gladly accepted the change of subject. "Care of Magical Creatures. You?"

"Arithmancy." Selene waved goodbye to Cho, who was making her way towards Hagrid's hut, and made for the fifth floor, nearly alone, being one of the few people to carry on the subject to NEWT level.

Arithmancy had a reputation for being one of the hardest subjects the Hogwarts curriculum had to offer, but it really wasn't too hard. Its teacher, Professor Vector, was well known for her overly harsh punishments, but again if you kept in her good books she was like a teddy bear. Not an actual teddy bear, because that would be terrifying.

Not many people actually understood Arithmancy, and that was perhaps the reason for its reputation. But, in a nutshell, it was all about magical numbers and ghost numbers and differential algorithms. Very interesting, but could easily bring on a throbbing headache.

Taking her seat next to a Hufflepuff boy – she could never remember his name – Selene tucked an unruly lock of hair behind her left ear and quickly reviewed the last lesson. She'd remembered to complete her homework, thank Helga, and it looked alright. It had been two in the morning when she'd finished it, and to be honest it wasn't all that easy to remember how she'd worked out the equations.

Harry's P.O.V.

Professor McGonagall had called the whole of Gryffindor house to her office after lunch for some reason. The rumours had circulated wildly, leaving most in a state of serious bewilderment about McGonagall's true identity.

The least offensive rumour was that she had gotten word that the Weasley twins had spiked all the blue cupcakes in the school to make anyone dance the tango who decided to eat them. The next was absurd, that McGonagall was actually a giant purple dancing banana from outer space.

The rest of them ranged from the idea that McGonagall was in a secret relationship with Professor Flitwick, and to the fact that she was starting up a punk band.

"It's stupid, really. Why would McGonagall start a punk band when there are awesome bands like Frankenstein! out there?" Lily askes Harry as they waited outside McGonagall's office. "Seriously, have you heard them? They are amazing. Mum hates them, but then she only likes Warbeck."

Harry shrugged, but Ron launched into a conversation eagerly, wanted to discuss it with Lily. He'd never win; Harry thought sadly, Lily's obsessions went deep. She was crazy on the same level as Oliver Wood sometimes.

"Our mother loves that bloody singer." Ron groaned. "Every Christmas, every single Christmas. Bill tried to blow up the Wireless a few years back, but he just got yelled at. Seriously, what is it with Warbeck?"

Professor McGonagall opened the door, nodding for everyone to flood in. "Boys on the left, girls on the right." She commanded, much to everyone's confusion. This didn't even correspond with the theory that she was part-dragon.

When everyone had sat down, Harry noticed that there was an odd kind of gramophone in the furthermost corner of the room that hadn't been there the last time he had been called in here.

"Quiet please! Quiet please!" Professor McGonagall called, clapping for silence. "Thank you. Now, I have called you all here to tell you a piece of very exciting news."

No one reacted, and Lily fake-yawned, rolling her eyes.

However, Professor McGonagall seemed unaffected by this and continued to explain as if there had been a lapse of tremendous applause. "The Triwizard Tournament includes a great many traditions. Now, traditionally, come Christmas time, there is a great ball to further honour our guests. The Yule Ball."

The girls all seemed very excited about this, and started to gossip eagerly amongst themselves. "Yes, yes." McGonagall continued. "The Yule Ball is a chance for us all to let out hair down. Inside every girl is an elegant swan, inside every boy a lordly lion waiting to prance. Now, you will all be required to dance in this ball. Mr Weasley."

She pointed at Ron, whose ears turned pink and reluctantly stood up and walked toward Professor McGonagall. "Please put your hand on my waist."

Ron looked taken aback and visibly flinched. "What?" He asked, shuddering as people began to snicker. "Just, what?"

"My waist Mr Weasley." She replied briskly, and the twins wolf-whistled. "Quickly now, if you would…?"

Music began to play from the gramophone in the corner and McGonagall led Ron around the empty space left between the rows of boys and the rows of girls.

Selene's P.O.V.

The Ravenclaws were experiencing something that was much the same, but Flitwick was much too small to dance with any of his Ravenclaw's – not even the tiniest first year – so he was standing back and surveying them all keenly.

Selene had reluctantly accepted a partner in the form of Randolph Burrow, a fellow chaser on the Quidditch team. She didn't mind him, he wasn't horrid or anything, but there was just something about him that seemed to put her teeth on edge permanently. And after a few minutes, after she'd stepped on his feet no less than twenty-six times, he probably felt the same way.

"You have no sense of rhythm." He whispered to her, avoiding a couple of people next to them. "Sorry, but you just don't."

"I know." Selene gritted her teeth. "How long do we have to do this?"

Finally, the music stopped and everyone was allowed to go, with a reminder that the boys have to ask the girls, which made several people mutter under their breath about sexism and the stupid traditions people stuck to.

Well, that made her scuppered, Selene thought. Not being very popular in any way with guys, that meant she either had the option to go home for Christmas or go with friends.

Going home for Christmas wasn't the greatest thing, and she'd never looked forward to it religiously the way everyone else seemed to. No matter how many times Draco could brag about the decorations at the Manor, and how they surpassed the Hogwarts ones threefold, it didn't mean that they meant anything. Certainly, the Christmas tree could sometimes barely fit into the Drawing Room, and the lavish green and red streamers that adorned the banisters and walls were the best the Wizarding World had to offer, but the atmosphere was always muted, and her parents never enjoyed the way Selene and Draco would insist on playing a customary game of Quidditch after dinner. Her happiest Christmases had been spent at Hogwarts, with its infectious music and surrounded by people who actually cared what their friend would be doing on Christmas day.

The first Christmas, when Draco was in second year and she was in fourth, was amazing. Her friends had reluctantly allowed their parents to take them home, and even her lack of company in Ravenclaw tower didn't seem to dampen her day. Professor Flitwick had invited her to his office in the morning, and insisted in showing her some tricky little charms that animated Christmas baubles and decorations. She only knew Draco, and loosely Crabbe and Goyle, in the Great Hall, but she'd easily chatted to a Hufflepuff boy a couple of years older than her and even Ginny Weasley, who was a little jumpy at the time but they'd had an enthusiastic conversation about the Holyhead Harpies all the same.

Were the Weasley family always there at some point in her life? She'd heard tales of the Weasley twins throughout her years at Hogwarts, and had even been on the receiving end on a few of their pranks a few times. Percy had been Head Boy when she was a new Prefect, quite pompous and prim but hadn't been mean to her, and she it always felt safe to talk to him. Ron, she'd heard her brother complaining about him, along with Harry Potter, and the story about how he defeated the Wizard Chess set had been remarkable. And Ginny, she was the one she knew the least about, but from the few times she'd talked with her she was quiet, but tough.

"Are you okay?" Cho cut into her daydream. "You look like someone's just pitched you off the Astronomy tower."

"I'm fine." Selene smoothed her robes carefully, trying not to look at her friend. "What are you thinking about? Do you want Cedric to ask you to the ball?"

Cho shook her head quickly. "No, I mean, no, it's okay if he doesn't I mean… it's alright he can go with who he wants, we're not officially dating yet."

"Yeah, right. I know nothing about relationships, but the one thing I do know is that if you go on three dates with someone, they most probably like you." Selene soothed, feeling like she'd just won the House Cup with her first ever piece of relationship advice. "Please stop worrying. You need to worry about me instead."

"Oh my Rowena! Yes!" Cho's mood changed dramatically. "There's no problem there, George is going to ask you!"

Selene felt like she'd just been shoved in a muggle contraption called a blender. "Um… no. Sorry. He isn't."

Giving her a self-pitying look, Cho rolled her eyes and silently willed her friend to finally have some hope. "Um… yes. Have you seen the way he-"

"-looks at me, yes." Selene sighed and resisted the urge to face-palm. "That's because he's trying to work out a way to stop Fred killing me. I don't think me dating George will help at all. You have to come to terms with it soon Cho, I am not girlfriend material, not even for a prankster. And…" Selene searched blindly for an excuse. "…what will my parents think? The Weasley's might be one of the "Stupid Twenty-Eight" but my parents will massacre me if I as much step into Hogsmede with George."

"Exactly!" Cho clapped her hand together with the air of an evil mad scientist. "You've always wanted to piss them off, right? Well, date George, your parents will kick you out, and you'll be free!"

"Cho, one thing stands out from that little spiel, what about Draco?" Selene reminded. "I can't just leave him at the Manor, who knows what stunt father will pull?"

Cho groaned, slapping her hand to her forehead, but abandoned to conversation. Selene sat down in her spot at the Ravenclaw table, pulling out _Hogwarts – A History _from her bag. Hermione had taken it out of the library for her, thinking that Selene would enjoy it. And she was enjoying it, much to everyone's disdain. It seemed not even the most studious Ravenclaw could read it.

She was at the very end of the chapter which detailed the different relationships the Founders had to each other. It seemed Slytherin wasn't the evil, manipulating bastard everyone made him out to be, but was actually a very nice guy. Gryffindor was a bit of a player, what with his courageous nature and all that jazz, but did have quite a deep affection for Rowena Ravenclaw. Hufflepuff was a whizz at cooking, and taught all the house-elves their recipes. In fact, she'd established the whole house-elf idea to give them an abuse-free workplace, and Selene had mentally logged this information to tell Hermione at some point. Ravenclaw was clever, like she was supposed to be, but also had quite the sense of humour, as she was the one who allegedly charmed the staircases to move around.

_"Selene." Father looks down at me sternly. Is it time for 'the talk'? _

_ "Yes father." I obligingly take the chair opposite him, ready for this. Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. I must be in Slytherin. I must be in Slytherin. I must be in Slytherin._

_ "I need to talk to you about the houses at Hogwarts." He starts, nodding at my lack of surprise. I have spent my childhood in out library after all. "There are four. Slytherin, which was your mother and I's house. Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Gryffindor." He says the last with a perceivable curl of his mouth._

_ "Yes father." I repeat, biting my tongue like I have been taught to do. It is as I expected. I must be in Slytherin. I must be in Slytherin._

_ "You are expected to be in Slytherin." Father says what I thought he would. "Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Gryffindor are below you."_

_ He most likely says the rest in order of their acceptableness. Hufflepuffs are loyal, and despite their weaknesses, they may bode well with the estate. But Ravenclaws are too clever, and no pureblood elite family want their child to be in Ravenclaw. And Gryffindors are the deadly enemies of my family. I can't be in Gryffindor. I must be in Slytherin._

_ "Yes father." I acknowledge, hardly listening. I must be in Slytherin. But if I must be in Slytherin, then why am I hoping for Hufflepuff, Gryffindor or Ravenclaw? No. I must be in Slytherin. For my sake, I must be in Slytherin.._

Shaking her head, Selene stowed the book back into her bag, turning to where Cho, Marietta and a few others were discussing the yule ball.

"We can go dress shopping!" Marietta squealed. "Next weekend's Hogsmede, isn't it Selene? I know exactly where I can get the perfect dress… who do you think will ask me?"

Selene wisely chose not to answer that and instead idly wondered when Professor Flitwick would be passing around the list for people who wanted to stay at Hogwarts over Christmas. Her parents wouldn't probably mind either way, if Draco was at Hogwarts Selene should be as well.

"Ahem." Selene looked up suddenly. Cedric was standing in front of the group of girls, looking very anxious and slightly green. "Cho, I was wondering, um… if you'd…"

"YES!" Cho squeaked. "Oh, yes I'd love to go to the Yule Ball with you!"

"Great!" Cedric grinned. "See you around then. Oh, hi Selene." He smiled at her, before walking over to his Hufflepuff friends. If all the askings were going to be that simple, maybe she did have a chance after all.

Too late, Selene remembered that Zabini was a fourth year, and that he'd most certainly ask her ASAP to go to the ball with him. Being the creepy dude that he was, Selene didn't really want to be stuck with a Slytherin as her date and he wouldn't give up very easily.

So there were two options; persuade Draco to come home with her for the Christmas holidays, or get a date in the next couple of weeks. And when your best feature is your mind, that's not very easy. She wasn't a looker like Cho or charming like Marietta, she was shy, quiet, geeky and clumsy. The exact opposite of anything even remotely useful in the romance front. Not to mention her dysfunctional family name, that seemed to be something that she could never shake.

Someone had asked her out once, back in her fourth year, when people were still convinced she was French, not British. The guy had asked her this, Selene had told him and suddenly he wasn't quite so interested.

But she had friends, and for that Selene was grateful. They'd sat with her the whole day after she received that Howler over breakfast and tactfully didn't comment on her addiction to cookie dough ice cream. They'd introduced her to One Spell – which she hated, but it was still a nice gesture. And most of all, they'd never penalised her for her family. Unlike some others.

And as if by magic, those 'some others' came into view. Selene took one look at him, sighed and buried her head into her book again, preferring to read than to engage in another argument.

"Look up!" Cho pressed, obviously still hyped over Cedric. "Come on Selene, look up! George Weasley's coming in!"

Shaking her head, Selene kept on re-reading the paragraph. "That's Fred, not George."

Cho appeared into her vision, looking slightly puzzled but still hyperactive. "You can tell them apart? They are identical; there is nothing dissimilar between them! How do you know?"

"Godric, I don't know, I just can." Selene muttered, keeping her focus on the book. "They aren't identical; everyone just assumes that because their mother can't tell them apart. Fred, for example, glowers whenever I enter his presence and George simply looks indifferent. If that isn't an easy way to tell them apart what is?"

"Yeah, but Fred hasn't seen you yet." Cho pointed out. "He at least _looks _normal. So how, in that single glance, could you tell them apart?"

Selene almost dropped _Hogwarts – A History_. How could she tell them apart? She'd only talked to George a handful of times in total, and Fred wouldn't talk to her without being an arsehole. How the hell could she tell them apart?

Looking up again, she confirmed that it was Fred, along with the Quidditch commentator Lee Jorden and a Gryffindor sixth year she didn't recognise. Fred hadn't spotted her, that much was true, but somehow she just _knew _it was Fred. Even Lee was calling him George. So how…

"I'm going to go find Fleur." Selene found herself saying. "I said I'd help her with the second task."

Ignoring the questioning looks of her fellow Ravenclaws, Selene fled the Great Hall, resisting the urge to transfigure Fred into a goldfish on her way out. She made for the library, closeting herself on a chair without thinking about what she was meant to be doing.

The library was always where she went when she was upset, annoyed, or generally on the receiving end of dirty looks. This predicament didn't fit under any of the above. And, to be honest, all she wanted was for Fred to stop judging her.

Was it her face? Was it just something everyone saw but most were too kind to mention? Did she physically look like a Malfoy, like snobbish pureblood royalty? Her personality, was her shyness her simply just believing herself to be above everyone?

But the biggest, most momentous question she found herself asking herself: if she could cope with the glares in the hallways, then why did it hurt so bloody much when Fred Weasley judged her?

**Yes! It's Friday, a lovely, sunny Friday, and I have posted chapter 15! Maybe it was the weather, maybe it was the Oasis song I've been listening to (Don't Look Back In Anger), but it's here!**

**I'm sorry if you were expecting Selene to get her Yule Ball date this chapter, but I promise, I promise next chapter. I just wanted to add that little snippet at the end, as I think everyone has moments of self-doubt, especially me. **

**Anyway, review, please! I'll love you for forever! (See what I did there? Ha HA!)**

**Ciao!**

**Eleanor xxx**


	17. Chapter 16: Supersonic

**Hola, mes amigos! **

**Kacey, I can say no more. I'm trying to draw it out a bit first though.**

**Where are my reviews? I know I promised a one-shot for the 30****th**** reviewer, but no one will get one if you guys don't review! I might do another prize for the 40****th**** too, if we get past the first benchmark.**

**The title of this chapter is inspired by Supersonic by Oasis, check it out :D**

Chapter 16: Supersonic

"Well, that was enjoyable." Cho raised her eyebrow at Selene's observation. "Sarcasm, that was sarcasm, I promise." Selene said hastily.

"Well that's good, because I might have had to sign you up for mental observation." Cho joked lamely, mulling over the incredibly boring Transfiguration theory lesson they had been forced to take part in. It seemed that however many times you could review Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration, it would never be enough.

"Hmmm…" Selene murmured, not really listening. She had promised to review the first twenty chapters of _Hogwarts – A History _for Hermione by that evening. She had only just finished chapter nineteen, and was diligently ploughing through chapter twenty. On top of that, Cho was refusing to talk about any subject apart from the Yule Ball, and Selene still hadn't found a partner.

Zabini had asked her twice, and both times she had declined. As far as she knew, Fleur was going with Roger Davies for some reason, and Marietta was going with some guy from Beauxbatons that she couldn't remember from when she went there.

"Selene, ma cherie!" Fleur's overly bright voice interrupted her reading, and Cho's face darkened. Cho didn't like Fleur that much, but at least they were somewhat friendly. "'Ow are you? I 'Aven't zeen you for too long!"

Selene chose not to point out that it was only last night that they'd been reviewing ideas on what the Second Task might entail. Fleur had discovered that it would sing if you opened it underwater, but Selene's limited knowledge of both Herbology and Care of Magical Creatures wasn't useful for either of them.

"'Ave you found a date for zee Yule Ball?" Fleur chattered excitedly. "Iz zat Fred Weezly going to ask you?"

"No!" Selene defended, almost instantly. "He doesn't like me very much Fleur. It's George I'm on better terms with." She corrected lightly.

"George Weezly? Hmm…" Fleur tapped her chin with a pair of slender fingers. "Iz zat ze guy 'o keeps staring at you?"

"George hasn't been staring at me…?" Selene trailed off, very confused. "Why would he? You can tell them apart, right?"

"But of course!" Fleur smiled gracefully. "But I 'ave 'ad a leetle trouble. Can you come with me?"

Cho nodded, but she didn't smile. "You go Selene; I should be okay with this homework now."

Fleur eagerly took her friend on a walk that seemed to detail most of the castle, and also seemed like a chance for Fleur to show off on an epic level. She almost knocked out a couple of fourth-year Slytherins, and Selene made a mental note to tell Draco. He'd be amused; they both shared the same basic sense of humour.

"I don't understand the riddle." Fleur spoke in French, which was always preferred despite her wish to improve at English. "Have you had any luck?"

Sighing, Selene rubbed the back of her neck. "No, I'm sorry Fleur. But I think it's probably underwater, because you had to open the egg underwater and-"

The rest of this explanation was lost as Fleur embraced her friend passionately. "Thank you!" She gushed, beginning to walk away again, dragging Selene behind her. "There are not many underwater places in Hogwarts, are there now? It should be easy to narrow it down!"

As they headed for the grounds, and the Beauxbatons carriage, Ron hurried up to the pair of them. "Hello Ron, how are you? Hope you haven't been in trouble!" Selene smiled.

Seeing his curious expression, she realised she had spoken in French. "Oh, sorry. Hi Ron."

"WillyougototheYuleBallwithme?" Ron rattled off quickly, blushing scarlet. "Um… Fleur?"

Selene mentally facepalmed. Ron had gone as red as a cherry tomato and seemed stuck-still, frozen like an icicle, and Fleur looked furious.

"What do you think? No, no! You are much too young, for one thing, and what makes you think…" Fleur began to yell in rapid French, her Veela side shining through a little.

Selene quietly prodded Ron, who had frozen, and seeing no response, gave a hasty goodbye to Fleur and began to propel Ron towards Gryffindor tower.

"Ron?" She whispered, ignoring the curious gazes of everyone as she basically pushed Ron up the staircase. "Ron?"

"Huh?" He started, looking around. "Did she say yes?"

Selene patted Ron carefully on the back, trying to prepare him for the news. "Sorry, she kind of said no. And yelled at you. She doesn't meant it, I promise, she's just a bit… passionate sometimes."

"Oh." Ron stopped still in his tracks as they gazed up at the Fat Lady. "Oh. Blithersnout."

"What?" Selene blinked. "What do you mean, Blithersnout?"

"It's the password." The Fat Lady rolled her eyes before swinging forwards. "I know you Ravenclaws think you are above passwords, but they are a lot more efficient, not to mention sensible…"

Ron turned to Selene, almost pleadingly. "Can you… tell them?" He asked, gesturing to the portrait hole. "Please? I don't think I can… you know…"

"Okay." She replied, nodding too. She followed Ron through the hole, taking in her unfamiliar surroundings. She had never been in the Gryffindor common room before.

It was red and gold, as was to be expected with Gryffindors, and it was also a lot noisier and chaotic than the Ravenclaw common room. There was a fireplace, one of the few similarities between the two house common rooms, and lots of first years were clustered around it.

Luckily, there were a few students from other houses in here too, she spotted Lottie chatting with Alicia Spinnet, so she didn't stand out. Ron made a beeline towards where Harry and Hermione were talking about something or other in a corner, away from all the mess and chaos.

"Hi Ron, where have-" Harry began, but seeing his friend's state of shock and Selene standing behind him, he seemed slightly taken aback. "Hi Selene. I didn't expect to see you here. Is Ron okay?"

"He asked Fleur to the ball." Selene explained, wincing. "She didn't take kindly to it. Unfortunately she's never known how to let someone down gently."

Hermione rolled her eyes, and Selene chuckled inwardly, wondering if she looked like that when she rolled her eyes. Harry raised his eyebrows disbelievingly, but when Ron didn't correct Selene he seemed to settle for resigned laughter.

"Mate, we need to hurry up!" Ron protested when he saw Harry's laughter. "Or all the good ones will be gone! I don't want to be stuck with Millicent Bulstrode!"

A look of realisation plastered itself onto Harry's face, and he looked around blindly, as if the perfect girl might present herself on a gold platter. "Yes Ron, but do you see any decent girls without a date?"

Ron's face lit up suddenly, and he whipped around to face Selene. "Selene, would it be okay if-"

Before he could finish his sentence, George Weasley walked up to the group. Nodding to Harry and Hermione and outright ignoring Ron, he turned to a very mixed up Selene. "Selene Malfoy, would you please give me the honour of being my date to the Yule Ball?" He asked, in a ridiculously posh voice.

Selene felt as if someone had whacked her around the head with a brick. George Weasley had just asked her to the Yule Ball. George. Weasley. Had. Just. Asked. Her. To. The. Yule. Ball. And now everyone was staring at her. Everyone.

She stood there carefully taking in this information for a while, before deciding. It was her best shot on getting Zabini out of her way, even if they were _just friends, _no matter what Cho was trying to ship. And she'd have a good time probably. He was hilarious, even if it did pain her to admit it. And also…

"Okay." Selene hazarded a little smile, unsure with what she was doing. "I guess."

Then, as quickly as he had appeared, he disappeared amongst the crowds of Gryffindors. Several people she'd never talked to before came up to congratulate her, patting her on the back like she'd just won them the Quidditch Cup.

"Oh." Ron said, attracting Selene's attention. "I was going to ask you. Oh well, they're lots of other fish in the pond."

"Sorry…" She apologised, feeling slightly embarrassed at this. "Um… I wasn't really expecting that. I was just going to go home for Christmas."

"Do you know anyone who isn't going with anyone?" Harry asked desperately. "Anyone? Anyone at all?"

Hermione shook her head quickly behind them, mouthing "I've got a date; I'll tell you later!"

Selene thought for a few seconds, mentally scrolling down the list of Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs who she knew. "Luna Lovegood… no, she's a third year, Padma Patil maybe… do you know her? Her twin's in Gryffindor, I think."

"Yes! Thank you!" Ron thanked Selene. "And you can…" He looked around shiftily. "Can you not tell anyone about Fleur? Thanks…"

"Oh, sure." She shrugged off. "Fleur will have forgotten about it by tomorrow anyway, she had about two hundred Yule Ball proposals in the last week alone. You weren't the youngest either."

Selene bid goodbye to Harry, Ron and Hermione, wanting to get a grip on what had just happened in the walk back to Ravenclaw tower.

Fleur was trying to get Selene to work out exactly what was underwater in the Second Task when Ron walked up and asked Fleur to the Yule Ball. Fleur had started to yell, and Selene had propelled Ron back to Gryffindor tower. She had explained the situation to Harry and Hermione, and then Harry had started thinking about Yule Ball dates. Then George had come up to her, Selene Malfoy, and asked her to the Yule Ball.

And she'd said yes.

"Crap." Selene swore, right in the middle of the corridor. "What happens if my parents find out? Draco will probably be at the Ball too, and the pact doesn't cover…"

Without thinking, Selene ran all the way back to Ravenclaw tower and the portrait, ducking inside the hole and making straight for her dormitory. She threw herself down on her bed, drew the curtains around it and flopped onto her back, staring up at the Ravenclaw-blue drapes above her. For a few moments, her mind was blank, consumed by the overarching blueness. Then her memory came flooding back, and the true pressure of what she'd dug herself into began to show.

This was bigger than a hole; this was the beginning of a tunnel to Australia. This was bad, very bad. And, unlike other people, she couldn't bring herself to tell George why.

She couldn't just casually say 'Oh, I'm sorry; I can't go to the Yule Ball with you'. It made her cringe just thinking that, let alone saying it to his face. But it was just so stupid, the deep mess she'd become embedded in. Why, why couldn't Draco keep his mouth shut?

She could imagine her parent's reactions, her mother quietly disappointed, that kind of anger that didn't need words, just a single look. Her father, furious, yelling and shouting, she wasn't worth their attention, she wasn't a true Malfoy…

"Am I, though?" Selene thought aloud. She was a Ravenclaw, that had been the first step in making her realise that maybe she wasn't like everyone else. Well, not everyone else. Sirius Black, her second cousin, had been a Gryffindor, but then again he was an escaped convict from Azkaban.

And the other person she could possibly follow was Aunt Andromeda, but she had been a Slytherin, and even she had believed Grandmother's convoluted theories for a while. And the other depleting factor is that she didn't even know the surname of the muggle-born man she married, let alone actually met anyone from her family.

Was she the first one of the Black family tree to understand that maybe, muggle-borns are people? Two of her best friends were muggle-born, and from what Hermione had told her, she would do anything for parents like hers. Parents that had normal, interesting jobs, not just a mother who spent all of her free time hosting lavish parties and a father who was an ex-school governor and stupidly rich.

But giving up her parents meant Selene also had to give up Draco, and she wasn't ever going to do that.

And, now she thought about it, her parents did have their good sides. Mother was sweet, and she never hesitated to take Selene on shopping trips that Selene hated, but enjoyed at the same time. Father understood about lots of her studies, and knew an awful lot about Transfiguration. They'd had a few understanding talks too.

But not many, and the last was about three years ago, when the Ministry had conducted that raid on the Manor. Thanks to Father's little cupboard under the dining room table, he had not been picked up on the numerous dark artefacts he owned. As much as she knew that those objects were better off being destroyed by the Ministry, she couldn't bear seeing her father in Azkaban.

She had been to Azkaban, just once, on Halloween the year she turned ten. It still made her shiver; thinking about the screams and the pained mutterings of the prisoners.

_I'm here._

_ The prison is big, black and forbidding. Even from here I can feel the depressing doom of the place wrapping itself around me like an unwanted winter coat. Mother's hand is taught, gripping mine like a lifeline. She is my lifeline in this grim place, this rock somewhere in the sea._

_ Dementors. As we move closer and Father presents the papers to the Dementor at the front gate, I can hear screaming in my head. This must be what they talked about, the 'affect' the Dementors had on people. _

_ Suddenly, a flashback appears in my vision. The laughing. Then I can see the prison again, and I am back in my ugly reality. But when my visions are as ugly as reality, maybe more so, then who am I to complain?_

_ We are inside now. It's cold, like you would expect for a place inhabited by Dementors. Mother is still clutching my hand, and I don't make any move to let go. She will keep me firmly planted on this world while my mind skips to the past. She always has. _

_ I take one step along the dark hallway. Screaming. I take another. Mad laughter. And another. Someone is crying over a body. The helpless tears of a sister. I can't pretend to understand how someone can stay here._

_ Thanking my parents for not making Draco come and letting him stay at home with Dobby, I find some small ounce of pressure that is needed to push me to that cell. I continue to walk, ten years of misery pounding in my ears._

_ "We're here." My mother whispers. "You can open your eyes now."_

_ I never even realised they were closed. And as I open them, my heart stops. Because, right in front of my own eyes, is the woman I hoped I'd never have to see again._

_ She looks up from her foetal position in the furthermost corner. Her face strikes fear into my heart, because I remember her all to well. I remember her when she wasn't sick, wasn't mad. When her eyes weren't devoid of emotion and her love wasn't wasted on someone who couldn't love her in return. She used to smile at me, when I was younger, and my problem wasn't evident._

_ When I wasn't rejected by my own family. Even now, even though my mother begs to differ, I know I am not like my father, my uncle, my aunt or my mother. I am my own person, and that brings shame to the Black family tree. _

_ But now her eyes are mad, her hair is messy and unkempt, and her face is twisted into an unpleasant leer._

"Selene?" Cho called, and Selene snapped out of it as quickly as she entered the memory. "Luna said you were up here."

Selene sat up, smoothing down her hair where the static electricity had frizzed it up slightly. It was now or never.

"Cho?" Selene opened the curtains and got up so she was standing only a few feet away from her friend. "I've got a date."

Cho's shocked expression reflected what everyone else probably thought. How in the name of Merlin's pants did she get a date so quickly? "Who?" She squeaked, after she'd got over the initial shock. "Is it Nott? I thought we agreed this, Slytherins aren't good enough for you."

"Calm down." Selene couldn't help but smile, even with the depressing memory hanging over her slightly. "It's not a Slytherin."

"A Ravenclaw?" Cho pressed, plonking herself down on Selene's bed. "Gryffindor, Hufflepuff?"

"Gryffindor." Selene explained, blithely wondering how long it would take Cho to work out who she was going with. She, along with the rest of the deprived Ravenclaws, had been trying to set them up for the last few weeks anyway.

"George?" Cho guessed, looking extremely happy. "Please don't lie…"

Selene looked away, taking the opportunity to observe a very interesting cloud. But, Cho was incredibly annoying when she just sat, looking at you, and it isn't hard to make Selene crack under pressure. So, carefully, being aware of her eardrums and mental stability, she nodded.

"I told you so." Cho grinned, and sprang up to envelope Selene in a big hug. "And now we can go dress shopping!"

"I already have a dress Cho." For once Selene thanked her mother for her forethought. "Mother got me one during the holidays, when she noticed the whole 'dress robes' thing on the Hogwarts letters."

"Oh." Cho seemed slightly dejected. "But you can still come with me and the girls right?"

Reluctantly, Selene agreed, but quietly started to calculate the different ways she could get out of it. Shopping was painful at the best of times, and with lots of overexcited Ravenclaws gushing over the different colours they couldn't wear, it quickly became unbearable.

Fred's P.O.V.

Fred ran a hand through his hair and continued to quiz his twin brother.

"Who are you going with?" He continued to ask, but George was not budging. "Oh, come on mate, it wasn't my fault that I wasn't around when you asked the lady."

"You won't like it." Was all George offered, looking a little guilty. "So I don't think it'd be a good idea if I told you. And no, she's not a Slytherin."

"Do I know her?" Fred continued to ask. "Is she in any of our classes?"

George chuckled quietly. "You definitely know her, and if I didn't know better you have a itsy bitsy crush on her, but I'm not entirely sure."

Fred rolled his eyes, finally giving up on the subject. He most definitely did not have a crush on whoever George was taking. For one thing, if he did, he'd know about it and act on it.

"Hey, Lee?" Fred began, pausing in his doodling of Snape getting strangled by a Gryffindor scarf.

"Yes Fred?" Lee looked up from his 'Transfiguration Homework' which was actually just ideas for their next branch of Skiving Snackboxes.

"What did the fisherman say to the card magician?"

"I don't know." Lee was mildly interested at this; he'd never heard this joke before, which was quite a stretch. "Something about how marvellously stupid the magician is?"

"Pick a cod, any cod." Fred revealed, laughing slightly. "Did you never pay attention in Muggle Studies?"

"Nah mate." Lee grinned. "I have a vague idea on why that joke is supposed to be funny though."

"It's not just meant to be funny, it is." Insisted Fred, finishing his doodle with a final flourish of his pen. "Ta dah! What's a frog's favourite drink? Croaka Cola!"

George regarded his twin for a few seconds before throwing down his quill and throwing his arms in the air. "I give up! I will tell you as long as you don't throw any more awful jokes at me."

"Do tell, dear Georgie." Fred rested his head in his hand, staring intently at his twin. "I don't have all day."

"Selene Malfoy."

Fred blinked at his twin for a few moments before falling off his armchair in shock. He had expected a lot of things, but not this. "What?" He choked out, glaring at George's laughter. "Just what?"

Everything was wrong with this. He just… he just… he felt annoyed, jealous even? Jealous? What was wrong with him? She was just a Malfoy, she was just a Malfoy… Closing his eyes, Fred tried to bring back some normality to his mind. Think about pranking Slytherins. That always worked.

"You okay?" George looked down concernedly. "You don't have concussion or anything?"

"I'm fine." Fred sat up and tried to keep his face blank. But inside, his mind was whirling with unwanted thoughts.

Why, of all the girls, did his brother have to pick Selene Malfoy, the prefect? The sister of one of the biggest stuck-up snobs in the whole of Hogwarts, not to mention a Slytherin. Daughter of an ex-Death Eater, if what his dad said was true. And probably the most annoying girl in the whole damn world.

"You don't have a problem with it?" George asked tentatively.

Fred laughed, without humour. "She's a Malfoy George. Of course I have a problem with it!"

"You know." Hermione cut in mysteriously. "You are being a total prick."

"Thanks Hermione." Fred laughed, not taking her seriously.

"I'm not kidding." Hermione added in a sharp voice. "She is a really nice person, and you are being a hypocrite continuing to judge her by her family's actions. If everyone looked at you like you were your father and obsessed with muggle inventions, how would you feel? You have made lots of stands in the past against people who are doing the exact same thing as you are doing at this moment."

"What do you mean?" Fred asked, genuinely puzzled. "You weren't hexed by her Hermione; you don't know what you're on about."

Hermione stood up so she was directly facing Fred. "I do. I have constantly been verbally attacked by Malfoy because I am a Muggle-Born, and Selene has never judged me on that. She never uses any terms that refer to blood status, and she has told me that she personally doesn't give a damn about any of that. And you famously pranked Flint because he judged Neville by his surname, and asked him why he sucked at DADA. And then, faced with a girl that has done nothing wrong in her entire life, you judge her because she is a Malfoy. And seriously, you provoked her, and you deserved it. She apologised to you as well, and you blanked her. Give her a chance Fred."

"But…" Fred could find nothing to say in his defence. "It's not just her bloody surname that's the problem. She…"

"What?" George prompted, a smirk appearing on his face. "Are you jealous?"

"I AM NOT JEALOUS!" Fred yelled. "I am most definitely not jealous! Why would I be? She's only…"

But was Selene 'only' anything?

"See?" George said, smiling satisfyingly. "I told you Lee. I believe you now owe me three galleons."

"Not yet." Lee shook his head vigorously. "I have to see living proof first, not just a vague idea of what is going through his head."

"What?" Fred asked, looking from Lee to George and back again. "What are you talking about?"

"They're taking bets." Lily supplemented from where she was sitting with Katie in front of the fire. "Dumbles has got twenty sickles on them two." She addressed this last comment to George and Lee.

"Interesting." Lee tapped his quill on the sheet of parchment. "Do all the teachers have bets then?"

"Most of them." Lily shrugged. "I hear through the grapevine that Flitwick has a galleon on you and me Lee. Sprout has thirty knuts on George and Ange for some reason, and I think Flitwick's bet on them too."

Fred rubbed his forehead. "What?" He repeated, but no one gave him any extra information. "Oh, okay. Just ignore me then."

He left the group eagerly chatting about betting and teachers, making his way up to the Gryffindor sixth year boy's dormitory.

"Why?" He asked the empty room, lying on his back randomly in the middle of the floor. "What the hell is going on with my life? Why is no one answering my desperate pleas for information?"

Being alone didn't really help Fred with his quest for a Selene-free mind. If her closed his eyes, he could just see Hermione's face, chastising him for his continued boycott of Selene.

And what were his other problems with her?

His mind came up unfruitful; apart from one little niggle at the back of his mind. He couldn't quite reach it, and however much he tried to grab it it began to drift away. It didn't matter anyway, she was going with George and he couldn't do a damn thing about it.

**Hello again!**

**I have decided! I shall give a one-shot prize to both the 30****th**** reviewer and a random pick from the next four reviewers! You will have to wait a little longer, but remember what I said last chapter and you'll be fine.**

**I chose the song title and song because the first few line of the song basically sum up the problems Selene is going through, even if they aren't clear. Also, the song is awesome, and I love Oasis!**

**Oh! The band names – My Charm Romance is the wizard equivalent of My Chemical Romance, One Spell = One Direction and Frankenstein! is basically Rammstein (German band). **

**Does anyone have any ideas, any questions, any wants? Seriously tell me what you want to see in 'I'll Love You For Forever' and your wish (probably) will become my command, unless it is completely improbable.**

**Fred Weasley: Come on guys; press the 'Review' button! The author has worked very hard, writing 4000 words in two days, and she needs reviews! Now, excuse me, I need to go and prank Draco Malfoy…**

**Heh heh. That last little part from our amazing Fred Weasley is a not-so-subtle hint about what may be occurring next chapter…**

**And – this is a bit off topic, but do you think I should do multiple stories or all in one? I'm going to take this up to Harry's 7****th**** year, and maybe, maybe do a next-generation. So, what do you think?**

**Aufwiedersehen!**

**Eleanor xxx**


	18. Chapter 17: Dresses and Shoes

**Hello!**

**So, I have come to a decision. But before I do; let's say thank you to my awesome reviewers. Number 1: kaitekayy123, heh heh heh. **

**Number 2: Kacey, in the name of Merlin that was a long review. I love both MCR and Panic! At The Disco too, so it sounds like we have the same music taste! And OMG you went to a concert! Wish I could, but, my mum won't let me. Yippee! - I love next generation stories but there aren't many good ones out there, which is why I want to write one. So… should Freddie live or die? Don't worry! You don't have to decide yet! But I need to know before I start the sixth book.**

**And number 3: maxie210, flattery gets you lots of places, but I'm wondering whether it works in this context… you are an awesome reviewer though.**

**Finally number 4: Mongyfish – you are my 30****th**** reviewer and you also win a one-shot, paired with the one for the random reviewer! Read the terms and conditions below; if it works out I'll try and combine them. And this chapter should be out soon.**

**Don't kill me… *quickly dives behind a large pile of Harry Potter books and DVDs* but I have decided that… **

**KACEY, you are the winner of this prize; ask me to create any one-shot form the Harry Potter Universe! It can be from this story group with my OCs or from the normal canon universe. And as I am feeling extra kind, you can choose from later on in this story too! So, just review back to me with your answer, and your wish shall be my command. WARNING! I don't do Sirius/Remus, Sirius/Snape, Draco/Harry, Draco/Hermione, so let's just say canon couples of couples from this story please! Sorry, I'll just suck at them.**

Chapter 17: Dresses and Shoes

If there was on thing she hated, it was shopping.

And when your mother is obsessed with it and your parents are dirty rich, all you ever seem to do is shop. Ever. Paris, Madrid, Moscow, New York… the list is endless. Dragged round the endless shopping centres, the overly expensive and fancy dress shops. Selene thanked her lucky stars (not that she had any) that her mother had decided to leave her behind when she shopped for the dress.

But now she was obligated to repeat the ordeal along with all of her over-excited friends.

And, when you are stuck between weaving in and out of various dress shops and falling asleep while you're supposed to be giving your less-than-expert opinion on whatever costume they've popped up in, life could never be more boring.

"_Selene!_" Cho yelled into her friends' ear as Selene slowly became encompassed in her book. "Pay attention!"

"Huh?" Selene looked up sharply from her book and looked around warily. "Um… sorry Cho. What's the matter, have you sighted my brother again?"

Cho rolled her eyes and dragged Selene up by the arm. "Pay attention!" She repeated, sounding exasperated. "We need your help you know, your non-biased opinion. Now, seriously, pink or purple?"

"Purple." Selene said, on a whim, not really caring. "Both will look nice on you. You're the one who can wear multiple colours."

"It's not that bad. Blue, purple, green, they all look good with your complexion." Cho soothed, holding up one of the many dresses she was holding to Selene. "See, Marietta, look! Dark blue really brings out her eyes."

Selene face-palmed and tried not to go crazy at the never-ending quest for her friends to find her 'signature colour'. "Guys, I already have a dress so calm down. My mother thought I wasn't responsible enough to buy my own." She elaborated.

"She's right." Cho guided Selene back down to her seat again. "But we still need you. There is no way in Death Eater hell that you are going to leave us here while you go and peruse whatever book shop you are hopelessly infatuated with at the moment. No, you have to at least wait until we've narrowed our choices down."

Cho left Selene sitting down in her chair and walked back over to where Marietta was deliberating between three dresses, all a similar shade of green but all different styles, lengths etcetera. It really was lucky Selene was sorted, because she'd have gone insane by now of she had to actually shop for dresses as well as those two.

Her thoughts quickly began to drift back to the book, and within moments she was firmly planted in storyland again.

Books had always played a major part in her life, from when she was a young girl and had just discovered the unused library in the Manor's left wing, from when she was in France and she spent hours poring over books you couldn't get in Britain, to the old bookshop in Hogsmede. If you gave her a pile of books, you wouldn't have to worry about her for ours, a trick that her mother exploited often.

When she looked up again, Cho and Marietta were paying for their dresses, and beckoning anxiously to Selene. Selene got up, tucked the book into the bag that was full of various accessories and walked over, hoisting the bag onto her shoulder so her poor arm wouldn't fall off.

"What did you get?" She asked.

Marietta seemed more than eager to oblige and quickly held up her dress, and Cho followed suit. Marietta was wearing pink, and the dress was reminiscent of a princess dress, and Cho was wearing silver, a more Asian style dress.

Selene nodded, not really knowing what to say. She never was very good at making useful comments about appearances. "Great." She said truthfully. "Can I leave now? I really want to get a new book."

"What about Butterbeer and cookies?" Cho asked, pouting. "You _have _to stay for those!"

Selene groaned inwardly, but obliged, taking the bags that contained the dresses and unknowingly resigning herself to the occupation of chief luggage carrier for the rest of the day.

The three friends took a table on the furthermost side of the Three Broomsticks, Marietta getting up to buy the Butterbeer and cookies while Selene divided their baggage between three extra chairs. Cho took the seat right in the very corner of the room, and Selene took the spot next to her.

"So…" Cho began, turning to face Selene. "How did he ask you?"

"Oh, please Cho." Selene groaned, putting her head in her hands. "He just asked me, okay? I'm not even truly sure why I said yes, to be perfectly honest."

"But Seeelllleeeennneeee…" Cho whined, doing her best puppy-dog eyes. "You promised…"

"Okay." Sitting up slightly straighter in her chair, Selene took her face out of her arms and screamed mentally. Why was she cursed with such nosy friends? "Ron Weasley, you know him? Well, when I was with Fleur, he came up and asked her to the Yule Ball. Fleur…" Selene winced at this and fiddled with her sleeve. "…yelled at him. I managed to get him to the Gryffindor common room and I explained to Harry and Hermione what had happened. About ten seconds later, George came up to me and asked me to the Yule Ball, not unkindly but really, really publically. I said yes and… there you have it." Selene explained, tactfully choosing not to mention Ron's failed attempt to ask her. "It's not like I don't _like _him, it's just more platonic. I don't see him as anything more than a friend. Sorry Cho-ster."

Cho's eyes narrowed, like she was trying to work out exactly what was wrong with Selene and give her a detailed diagnosis. "I don't understand, you didn't mind when we started to ship you two, what's changed?"

"Nothing's changed!" Selene threw up her arms. "I stand accused of being extremely tired when you started that whole tirade, and being too wrapped up in schoolwork to notice much. And as far as I know, we are only friends."

"But why does he keep staring at you then?" Cho asked, exasperated. "Every Charms lesson, every Transfiguration lesson, every Potions lesson, he stares at you. And why wouldn't he like you, you're pretty, sweet-"

"Pretty?" Selene snorted. "Yeah. Right. I'm too tall for one thing, then there's my complexion which is much too pale, my weird combination of mouse-brown hair and blue eyes, and my lack of dating experience."

"Selene!" Cho glared her friend down. "You are my best friend, and if there's one thing I won't let my best friend do its put herself down. You aren't that tall, it just seems that way. You're only, what, 5'8"?"

"I'm 5'9"." Selene corrected.

"Still, not too tall!" Insisted Cho. "Your skin might be pale, but that's just genetics and it really looks good on you! And, for your information, your hair is not mouse-brown, it's hazelnut-brown. The combination of blue eyes and brown hair are not weird, and your dating experience is only down to the amount of books you read and your shyness."

"Thanks Cho." Selene murmured, not really feeling better but deciding to drop the subject. "I'm just not pretty, okay? If you want beauty, look at my mother. Look at Aunt Bella, before she went mad and got locked up. Look at you! I am by no means pretty."

"Three Butterbeers." Marietta plonked the three bottles down on the table. "One white chocolate chip cookie, one dark chocolate cookie and one fudge brownie cookie. Yum." Marietta added, looking down at her fudge brownie one.

Selene laughed, before taking a bite of her white chocolate chip cookie. There was just something about white chocolate that could take all of your worries away.

"How can you eat that?" Cho asked incredulously, looking at Selene's cookie in horror. "White chocolate isn't chocolate!"

"Get out!" Selene joked, pointing to the door. "You… destroyer of one of the heavenly foods!"

The friends sat in silence for about three seconds, before all of them burst into laughter. The regular fights between Selene's white chocolate and Cho's dark were overdramatic, overplayed and overused, but they never lost their funniness.

"Dark chocolate…" Cho waved her cookie in circles in front of Selene's face. "Lovely, scrummy dark chocolate…"

Selene made a swipe for the cookie, and Cho quickly withdrew it, hiding it away from Selene with the air of Gollum. "My precious…" She added for extra affect, and before you could say 'COOKIES!' they were all in fits of laughter again.

"What are the other heavenly foods?" Marietta asked, taking a sip of her Butterbeer.

"Right." Selene sat up again. "White chocolate's one, obviously. Then there's bacon, cookie dough ice cream, pistachio nuts and-"

"-Treacle tart?" Marietta suggested (un)helpfully.

Selene responded by hitting her with a nearby bag. "No, you fool! The last heavenly food is… tea. Liquorice tea."

"But liquorice tea isn't a food, it's a drink." Cho pointed out.

"Details, details." Selene waved a hand airily. "Ma cherie, liquorice tea is one of the seven wonders of the world!"

Cho rolled her eyes and aimed a kick at Selene under the table. "Yes, but it's not a food. If you made another mental list headed 'Heavenly Drinks' then it might make sense. But I digress, you can't keep eating the 'Heavenly Foods' on and off until Christmas! We girls have to suffer for our beauty!"

"Shut up." Selene grimaced slightly but ignored Cho's comment. Cookies were worth their weight in gold.

"OhmyRowena!" Marietta squealed, making Selene jump about six feet into the air. "We forgot the shoes!"

"Damn." Swore Cho, slamming her Butterbeer down onto the table. "How come we didn't realise that before? Anyway, we're kind of scuppered. Look at all of our bags, any more and our arms will drop off. The dresses, the accessories, the extra makeup…"

Selene shook her head in a pitying fashion. "My friends, you underestimate the power of magic." She took her wand out of her pocket and cast a quick shrinking charm and feather-light charm. "Ta da! Maybe my aforementioned skills can come in useful sometimes outside of school."

"You saved us!" Cho exclaimed dramatically. "How can we ever repay you?"

"By letting me go back to the school?" Selene asked dryly. "Or at least "loosing" me in a bookshop?"

"No can do Sel, no can do." Marietta giggled, placing one of the magically shrunk bags in her pocket. "We need to get shoes for you as well! Although, let's stay away from heels, right Cho?"

"Nope!" Cho said, popping the 'p'. "I dare say that maybe, just maybe, we can cross the danger line into uncharted waters. Well, not expressively uncharted but still we haven't explored them very much."

"Oh no…" Selene felt a familiar sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. "Can I go now?"

The other two shared a look before hurrying off to the shoe shop, telling Selene that only an unprecedented attack by Blaise Zabini was a relevant reason for her to even take a single step outside the door of the Three Broomsticks.

However, Selene welcomed this because even being stuck in a room full of chattering people is preferable to yet another shop with two annoying friends dragging you around.

It was a bit of a mystery how Selene had become friends with Cho, and even to this day she wasn't entirely sure how it happened. It seemed like one day she was the nervous new girl who no one would talk to because they thought she was an older, feminine version of her brother, and the next she had a close friend and a friendship group that came with it. Cho was the exact opposite of Selene; confident, cool, good at Herbology (!), pretty, girly, the full Monty. She wasn't obligated to hang around with Selene, who by even Ravenclaw's standards was incredibly geeky, but Cho did and within the year they were best friends.

And her friendship with Fleur… well, that was extremely complicated. The part-Veela had always had an interest in 'interesting people', and geeky English girls were part of that it seemed. Always so confident, Fleur had walked directly up to Selene on their first day at Beauxbatons and dragged her off to the dormitory they would share for the next two years, chattering excitedly about how fascinating England must be and how much Selene would love France.

And love France she did, the pain au chocolats, the croissants, the foreign food everyone else just took for granted, the day trip Selene took with the Delacour's to Paris and the amazing structures that seemed to tower wherever you looked. Without noticing, French culture had become such a major part of Selene's life and the language was second nature. She began to think in French, with the help of Fleur and Leanne. And then, after the meeting in Madame Maxime's office that morning on her thirteenth birthday, she became English again.

Now she was stuck in between, speaking English one minute and French the next, trapped in between French friends and English ones. She loved them all, but it was so _confusing_.

The door opened and Selene looked up eagerly, hoping Selene and Marietta had finally finished shopping, but unfortunately it wasn't them. Instead, Hermione Granger hurried in, shutting the door behind her to keep in the pleasant warmth of the bar.

She was on her own, which was unusual. Harry Potter wasn't standing on her left; Ron Weasley wasn't on her right. And as Hermione made straight for her, Selene realised that Hermione was here for her, no one else.

"Hi Selene." She greeted, sitting down in one of the chairs. "Are you okay? You looked a little freaked out when I saw you in our common room."

Shaking her head, Selene smiled and bit her lip. "No, I'm fine thanks. I was just a little bit overloaded then. I had just been asked to the Yule Ball."

Hermione cracked a grin. "So, you and George…?"

"Purely platonic." Selene insisted. "Nothing more. We are friends, nothing more. Also, his twin brother doesn't like me very much and he'd probably curse me if I starting dating George."

Hermione blushed at this. "I talked to him about that. He has absolutely no reason to discriminate against you like that. Yes, Draco is… a complete and utter prat but that doesn't mean you're automatically exactly like him. Fred once hexed Marcus Flint because he said something about Neville, and now he just stomps all over you because of one time. And if I didn't know better, I'd think he likes you." Hermione ranted.

"Liked me?" Selene did a double take. "Hermione, did you just say that you think Fred Weasley might like me?"

"He was acting incredibly strangely after George mentioned he was going to the Yule Ball with you. He fell of his chair, and then randomly stormed off. No matter whatever Ronald thinks, I do notice these things."

Selene felt like someone had just plunged her head underwater. "Okay. I'm going to pretend you just said "Fred Weasley doesn't mind you" if that's okay. It'll stop me going crazy trying to figure out something I definitely don't understand."

"That's fine." Hermione nodded her approval. "But I hope he at least doesn't hassle you anymore. He sometimes listens to me. But often he doesn't. Fred's okay, once you get to know him. He shouldn't be so derogatory towards you, but he's a nice guy. Just a bit… rules-optional."

"Thanks Hermione, for sticking up for me." Selene tried to sound grateful, and it worked. And she was grateful. "It's – it's a bit weird. I don't suppose you'd understand, but it kind of… really hurts me when Fred says all of those things. I don't even know why, it's just weird."

Hermione's eyebrows shot up into her mass of bushy brown hair. Obviously there was something about what Selene had just said that amazed her. "You have got to be kidding me." She gaped, staring at her. "Of course I understand, I mean. But just, wow. I'd never have thought that-"

"That what?" Selene's brow furrowed, as she tried to make some sort of context out of everything. "I don't like being judged as an older, slightly more nerdy version of my younger brother?"

"No!" Hermione resisted the urge to face-palm. "You really are clueless, aren't you? You're worse than Ron."

Shaking her head, Selene finished up her Butterbeer and regarded Hermione curiously. "Any luck on S.P.E.W.? Dobby, you know my family's old house elf? Dobby came to see me a few weeks back."

Hermione nodded briskly, easily slipping into "SPEW mode". "Harry likes that house elf, it's a shame he's not willing to do the same with the Hogwarts house elves too."

"Well, the house elves at Hogwarts seem happy with their jobs." Selene reasoned. "So it wouldn't do them any good making them give up what they love, but maybe you could try getting them wages? Maybe a few days off?"

"Exactly what I was trying to tell Harry and Ron!" Hermione exclaimed in exasperation. "But no, they both think I'm trying to get them out of work. When we were in the Top Box in the Quidditch World Cup, there was Mr Crouch's house elf. He fired her Selene, fired her for something she couldn't have possibly done. If that isn't discrimination I don't know what is."

"Some Wizarding families like to take advantage of their house elves." Selene added. "Mr Crouch blaming his house elf is one example, and my father used to like to get poor Dobby to punish himself for no reason. Not everyone does those things, it's just Father and Mother… well…"

"Something's happened." Hermione's tone softened. "You seem to avoid anything to do with them if you can, and you eve seem reluctant to speak to your brother."

Selene looked up in surprise. "Yes, something happened. But it really doesn't matter and it's something that I can easily fix. My main problem is my parents finding out who I chose to go with for the Yule Ball."

"Oh, are you sorted for dresses then?" Hermione asked keenly. "I am. I just hope the neckline isn't too low-cut, I don't really want to look like a fool. I'm wearing heels, I think. I really want to do something special as well, as it's my first real time doing anything girly."

"Me too. Marietta and Cho have been dragging me around every dress shop as far as the eye can see today, and they've only left me here on my "best behaviour". I can only leave if Zabini walks this way."

"Zabini?" Hermione prompted.

Groaning, Selene wished she had a large plastic bag to just hide in. "He kind of has a crush on me. He has since third year, when Draco first introduced me to all of his friends. He's asked me out about twenty thousand times, and he wanted me to go to the Yule Ball with him too."

Hermione choked back a laugh. "He's a bit young for you, isn't he? Also, you're about six inches taller than him."

"And I can't dance Hermione." Selene reminded. "I have about the dancing ability of a sock wearing a blindfold."

"That's not as bad as Fred." Hermione confided. "Between you and me, after the one of the Quidditch matches last year, he tried to dance and ended up giving two second years a concussion."

"How in the name of Rowena did he manage that?" Selene's mouth dropped open. "Are you sure he wasn't testing out of his new inventions or something like that? Because that is clumsy, even by my standards."

Hermione scoffed at this. "If you think you're clumsy, you should hear the tales about Lily Tonks' oldest sister. Nearly failed her Auror training apparently. Their mother must have an obscene amount of patience to deal with a clumsy Auror and an emo at the same time."

Something clicked in the back of Selene's mind. "Hermione, what's the name of Lily's mother?" She asked, holding her breath and waiting for the answer. Tonks… her mother had mentioned someone called Tonks quite often.

"I don't know, Andrea, or Andy or-"

"Andy?" Selene's blood ran cold. "Andy?"

_August. I know that much, as the sun is shining and everything seems fine, even if I can tell it is not._

_ My mother is pale, even paler than usual as she strides past me, walking straight into the living room, clutching a single sheet of parchment in her fist. There is something on that parchment that she wants no one to see, no one but her to read._

_ I follow her, almost unseen, sticking to the faint shadow of the door as my mother sits down in one of our armchairs. I have never seen her this eager, and yet so wary. _

_ She doesn't read the parchment aloud, as she often does when she reads her mail, but keeps it close to her as she frantically scans the words. I want to find out what that letter says, what it's contents mean and entail, but that only means punishment and that is something I could do without._

_ Then my mother slumps; and I am startled to see a couple of tears drip down her face. What has happened? Has someone died? Has someone found out about the mystical and dangerous objects hidden under our drawing room floor? Even me, a quiet and unassuming six year old, can tell what trouble would occur if anyone realised._

_ "Oh, Andy…" My mother whispers. "We're both so grown up now. Little Nymphadora, starting at Hogwarts and your little Liliana already five, and me with a smart little six year old Selene and a four year old Draco. Where did it all go wrong?"_

_ I feel a strange connection to those three names I do not recognise. I don't know those people, and yet they sound so real and alive in my mind._

_ "Andromeda…"_

"Andromeda?" Selene choked out, barely daring to believe it. "Is her mother Andromeda Tonks?"

Hermione nodded. "I think Lily's your cousin."

"She is." Selene whispered, remembering the moment when she over heard her mother crying over that letter. "Mother talked about an Andy when I was little. Aunt Andromeda. I've never met her, but I resemble her in a lot of ways. I found a picture when I was about eight. Mother, Aunt Andromeda and…"

"It's okay; you don't have to talk about it." Hermione said hastily. "I completely understand.

Selene shook her head. "I don't care it's just… I doubt Lily or Nymphadora even know I exist."

"They do." Hermione conferred. "At least Nymphadora does. They have to examine their family history for Auror training, see? So of course she knows you exist."

"Great."

"Anyway, enjoy yourself!" Hermione shrugged off the increasingly awkward silence. "I'll see you soon, okay?"

**Hillo!**

**No, that sucks. From the creator of melted cheese and honey sandwiches, the all new greeting "Hillo!"**

**And before you ask, yes, the Yule Ball is the next chapter. I just needed to wrap up the plot hole about Selene not knowing about her cousin who just happens to be in Hogwarts etc. etc. **

**Anyway, I'm going to post a link to Lily and Selene's Yule Ball dresses on my profile soon, so keep an eye out!**

**Review, you know you wanna!**

**See ya,**

**Eleanor xxx**

**P.S. Kacey and Mongeyfish, don't forget to tell me what you want in your one-shots! If it works out, they'll be separate but they might work together.. you never know…**


	19. Chapter 18: Revelations

**Yes! Yes! I know, I've changed the name. SORRY! But I had a sudden stroke of inspiration for the title and I changed both the title and the summary to better sum up the story. And I've decided on the one-shot front…**

**As well as the one-shots, I may do a prequel! Yes, it'll basically cover all the scenes from the first three books that Selene would be in; I mean, it's a small school after all.**

**I have a poll up on my profile; go check it out. It'll be open until about the 1****st**** July for sanity's sake.**

**Kacey: well, thanks! It might take me a little while, but I have a few ideas. I'll get back to you at a later date. And I love Physics! But I'm a geek, so ignore me.**

**And BellatrixD – I'm glad you like it. **

**This chapter is especially for you all out there, my loyal fans! I owe you all so much!**

Chapter 18: Revelations 

Fred Weasley, fearsome prank master and bane of Filch's life, fiddled with his tie.

It wasn't every day Dumbledore chose to screw with the student population of Hogwarts and use a tradition that was vaguely annoying. Dancing… eurgh. He just shuddered at the thought, and after the great incident of '93, he and George had a pact that gave George rights to forcefully drug or film Fred if he ever began to dance.

They'd had to momentarily freeze that agreement now of course.

And it was Christmas, of all days. Christmas, and now he was going to be dancing. He had already been yelled at by some Slytherin Prefect who got a snowball in her perfect up-do. Snowball fights were meant to be fun, for Godric's sake, not a reason to yell at people. He, Harry, George and Ron had thrashed a few Hufflepuffs that had ventured out and were roped into a huge brawl.

Not to mention the robes.

"Why?" Fred asked, grimacing at his reflection in the mirror. "What is up with society nowadays Gred? Can't they let a guy dance in normal clothes?"

George mimicked Fred's expression, looking down at his dress robes in distaste. "I think McGonagall has deciphered a way to keep us from our pranking schemes forever." He said sadly. "Make us look like idiots."

Fred snickered slightly. "At least ours aren't in _maroon_." He joked, looking down at his black ones. "Ickle Ronnie, all grown up and on his first 'date', wearing _maroon_."

"Come on Forge, we'd better go or Ange will massacre you." George pushed open the door and bowed mockingly. "After you, my dear."

Fred shot a dirty hand gesture at his twin but made his way into the common room where surprisingly few people were. "Knowing her, she'll still be worrying over her hair." He pointed out, turning around to look at George. "I expect Selene will be meeting you outside the Great Hall."

George quirked an eyebrow curiously. "Did you just call her Selene? I thought Hermione had a little impression on you." He nodded. "Yes she's meeting me outside the Great Hall. " He confirmed, still looking at Fred a little strangely. "Are you sure you're feeling okay?"

"I'm fine." Fred was taken aback at this abrupt comment and decided not to dwell on it. "Are we going to try and pull something off?"

"You read my mind." His twin nodded, willing to participate in some mischief. "I always thought we should have continued with Divination. Unfortunately two 'D''s said otherwise."

The twins shared an identical chuckle and an identical wink, before walking out of the portrait hole simultaneously, both thinking of different ways to prank the students and teachers of Hogwarts.

"When did you meet Selene?" Fred asked quickly, trying to keep his 'poker face' on. The last thing he wanted was George teasing him all night.

George shot him another curious look. "I sit next to her in Defence against the Dark Arts, remember? Professor Moody paired us up."

Fred face-palmed himself and managed a measured laugh. "Oh yeah, stupid me!"

"What's going on?" George looked concerned; evidently Fred's poker face wasn't effective against his twin brother and partner in crime. "You're acting strangely, really strangely. I've just swallowed a Looney Drop strange."

"No I'm not." He answered quickly, beginning the huge trek between them and the bottom of the staircase. "Why do you ask? I've never felt more normal."

"What? With that on?" George guffawed. "Come on mate. Let's get going before we miss both Ange and Selene."

An out-of-place sense of calm passed over Fred when George said Selene's name, making him mentally shake himself. No, that wasn't right; Selene Malfoy was the older sister of Draco Malfoy… pureblood society daughter and smart-arse.

The Great Hall was extremely festive-looking, even more so than was normal for Christmas. The baubles glowed different colours, the tinsel adorned every square inch of the Great Hall, and it looked like a giant had thrown up a large amount of paper-chains everywhere. The Christmas trees, grown and nurtured by Hagrid, were bright red, blue, yellow and green. Even the suits of armour had discovered their wild side, and someone had enchanted them to sing and dance every so often.

George echoed both of their thoughts. "Bloody hell."

"Hi guys." Harry meandered up to them, looking like hell, tailed by Ron in what looked like something Aunt Muriel would wear. "Selene and Angelina aren't here yet, we got here a bit early."

"What are you wearing?" Fred snickered at his younger brother. "They were the height of fashion, about twenty centuries ago ickle Ronnie. You've got your time period wrong. Sorry."

Ron glared at Fred and shot his middle finger up at him. After all, you couldn't grow up with five older brothers and not pick up some of their everyday lingo. "Fuck off." He muttered, looking gloomy. "You're not the one wearing mouldy dress robes…"

"And luckily, I'm not the one who has to dance with you." George reminded, feeling a bit smug. "I've got the best partner I think, out of all of us."

"You know she just can't dance?" Harry asked. "Hermione was talking about it on Saturday, that and something about Lily."

"Is she worse than my dear brother?"

"Apparently, close." Ron cut in. "I'd watch out for your feet George, if the heights of some girls' shoes are any indication. One wrong move and… ouch."

Fred shrugged non-committedly. "She really can't be as bad as me, if the way those second years now won't look at me for fear of retribution are any indication. She hasn't fallen over lately anyway."

Now Ron, Harry and George were all looking at him funny. "Since when do you notice Selene?" Ron asked, aghast. "You've never done anything to that affect, well ever."

"He said something similar earlier. I have absolutely no idea what is going through his head nowadays." George shook his head sadly. "I think he's finally lost it."

Ron shrugged and went back to looking around randomly, gawping at what looked like actual icicles hanging from the chandeliers. The Patil twins turned up a couple of seconds later, and Padma looked in distaste at Ron's choice of clothes and Parvati just looked bored.

Angelina appeared miraculously, along with Alicia and Katie, and walked up to Fred with a grin on her face. She was wearing a long red dress, being very supportive of Gryffindor, and even the gayest guy hanging around home had to admit that she looked stunning.

"Hi." She said briskly, in her normal fashion. "Hello George, Ron, Harry. Are you ready?"

She addressed this last question to Fred, who nodded quickly. "Just about. We were just waiting for George's girl."

"Who are you taking?" Angelina asked George, looking vaguely interested. "I heard you asked her in the common room, but that's all. Katie wouldn't tell me, said it's be a surprise."

"Ah." George looked shifty, and that was probably good, as Angelina had a strong sense of House companionship. She was likely to cut his head off for even considering a Ravenclaw as his date. "She's…"

There were a few sounds from the top of the staircase, and George and Fred turned around, hoping to see someone they could tease, like Flint or Roger Davies. Instead, Fred got the shock of his life.

Selene Malfoy was walking down the staircase towards them, next to Cho Chang and Marietta Edgecombe, looking terrified but amazing at the same time. Her dress was long like Angelina's, but a pale blue almost turquoise colour. It had silver detail around the top and her hair was loose and straightened. She was very pale, and it looked like her hands were shaking, a stark contrast to Cho's confident figure and Marietta's giggling.

Fred felt his mouth drop open. He never knew she could look so… beautiful. Next to him, George was smirking at his twin in satisfaction, but his eyes mirrored Fred's own. Complete and utter shock.

"That's the Ravenclaw chaser girl, isn't it?" Angelina spoke suddenly. "Scored six goals in our match against Ravenclaw last year. Then got hit in the back of the head by a Bludger their own Beater whacked. Was completely out of it for three days."

"Chaser? She plays Chaser?" George looked taken aback by this. "I never actually realised that."

Noticing George, Selene smiled and some of her nervousness disappeared. Cho and Marietta walked over to where their dates were, leaving Selene behind on the last steps of the staircase.

She took a deep breath and stepped forward, but lost her footing at the last moment and tripped down the last few steps clumsily. Fred surged forwards without thinking and managed to catch her before she hit the floor.

As his hands touched her waist, a jolt of something like static electricity ran up his arm and Fred nearly dropped her again. Selene blushed deeper than should ever be deemed possible and mumbled a "Sorry."

"Um…" For once in his life, Fred was lost for words. He didn't actually want to move from this awkward moment, stuck at the bottom of a staircase with his hands on the waist of a girl he supposedly hated. But before he could do anything embarrassing, he moved away quickly, holding his breath.

"Hi." She greeted, the blush fading from her face.

"Selene, this is Angelina Johnson. Ange, this is Selene Malfoy." George introduced the two girls toe each other, crossing his fingers that Angelina wouldn't go nuts at him. "Selene's a Ravenclaw." He added, rather uselessly as Angelina had just mentioned that she remembered her from the Quidditch match last year.

"It's good to meet you." Angelina nodded, smiling. "I've watched you play Quidditch, you've got a good technique."

"Thanks." Selene thanked, slightly taken aback at this show of kindness. "I'm not that good though, it takes a lot of work."

Fred's jaw dropped for the second time in a space of a few minutes. Angelina had never, never been this kind to someone in a different house before. Either the world was ending (and after a quick glance around, he assured himself that it wasn't) or Angelina had gone mad.

"Shall we?" George extended an arm to Selene and she took it. Fred's heart jolted for a second but he did the same to Angelina.

Inside the Great Hall it was like someone had decided to bring a portable snow cloud indoors and let it loose for a couple of hours. The atmosphere was incredibly festive. It seemed like everyone had chosen to stay at Hogwarts for the Christmas holidays, as the hall was packed and they had to squeeze in like sardines.

Everyone was still chattering excitedly, and awaiting the arrival of the champions and their partners. It was warm, despite the ice exterior, and Fred felt a little uncomfortable in his overly fancy dress robes. Angelina, on the other hand, looked calm and collected, just like she did on the broom. George was also looking overheated, but probably that was more down to being crushed in a crowd full of over-excited fourth years. Selene just looked…

Shaking himself, Fred tore his gaze away from Selene's face and tried to concentrate on something that wasn't weird. The chandelier, okay. It's made of glass. It's… big? No wonder he failed Muggle Studies so abysmally.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" Ludo Bagman called over the babbling crowd. Biting back the anger that made him want to go over and pour ice cold water over Bagman's cheating arse, Fred resigned himself to gritting his teeth and following the gazes of everyone else. "Please put your hands together for the Triwizard Champions and their dance partners!"

The whole hall began to clap as Cedric Diggory led Cho Chang into the Hall. Fred noticed the slight way Selene's mouth seemed to twitch as she observed her best friend with Cedric Diggory.

And as Viktor Krum led on with no other girl than Hermione Granger, she bit her lip slightly, in a barely noticeable way. Then when Hermione glanced over, she nodded, again almost unnoticeable, with that little smile on her face.

When Fleur Delacour flounced in with Roger Davies hanging on like she was a washing line, Fleur shot Selene a brilliant smile and a wink, and Selene coloured, but smiled again, a bigger smile this time. When she smiled her whole face seemed to light up…

Lastly, when Harry walked in with Parvati she stifled a laugh behind her hand at Harry's perplexed expression and shared a look with George.

The music began to play and Harry quickly began to dance a strange kind of waltz with Parvati, that failed, mainly because Harry was moving about twenty times as fast as his poor partner. Cedric seemed like a good dancer, as did Krum (Fred supposed that some Quidditch players had all the luck) and Fleur was great, although Fred had heard Charlie mention once that all French girls could dance. The rest of that postcard had consisted of reasons why he and George should prank Professor Lockheart, a large picture of Charlie's latest Dragon and a reminder that he needed new socks.

Eventually, Professor Dumbledore swept his long beard over his left shoulder – Fred wondering, and not for the first time, whether he ever plaited that white monstrosity – and offered his hand to Professor McGonagall. They were joined by Hagrid and Madame Maxime, Professor Karkeroff and a blushing Madam Pomfrey, and then Neville and Ginny. Fred could say a lot of things about his little sister, but she was a fair dancer.

George offered his arm to Selene, who accepted with an audible warning of her dancing skills or lack thereof. Fred watched them awkwardly begin to dance with a gnawing feeling of jealousy in his stomach, but grinned at Angelina, who begrudgingly nodded.

After about twenty seconds, Angelina looked like she was about to die of embarrassment. "You can't dance." She said bluntly as they narrowly avoided a head-on collision with Fleur and Davies. "At all."

"Thanks Ange." Fred sighed as he steeped on her feet again; today was really just a monument to his crap dancing skills. "Not much longer now." He gritted his teeth and risked a glance over to where George and Selene were "dancing".

They seemed to be having much the same problems as he and Angelina had, although they seemed to be having a bit of a laugh about it. Selene had no sense of the timings needed for a waltz, and kept accidently hitting George. George had the grace to pretend that he had no feeling at all in his body, and said things like "Ouch" and "Ow" with absolutely no emotion whatsoever.

It had stopped. Fred apologised to Angelina again for all the injuries he may have inflicted on her and sat down before he could take someone's eye out. George flopped down next to his twin with a huge grin on his face.

"I tell you what, that girl can't dance to save her life but she is just amazing!" He grinned.

"Great." Fred said blankly as he watched Selene and Angelina talk about something or other. "At least you can dance."

Someone started up again and the twins mentally groaned. If they weren't severely mistaken they would be nursing headaches by the end of the night.

"OI! ARE YOU BORED YET LITTLE KIDDIES? WELL, 'ERE WE ARE, ALL THE WAY FROM GOOD OL' BIRMINGHAM…!"

Lots of people rushed up to the stage where a band had magically appeared.

"THE WEIRD SISTERS!" The band's crazy frontman yelled as the lead guitarist strummed some power chords. "LET'S ALL DANCE LIKE A HIPPOGRIFF!"

George immediately stood up and walked over to where Selene and Angelina were. A couple of seconds later they were all nodding and George led Angelina off towards the dance floor.

Fred glanced around for a few seconds, making sure that Malfoy or his cronies were no where to be seen, before quietly walking over to Selene. He wasn't totally sure what he was doing, to be honest.

"Hi." He said and she jumped and turned around to face him.

"Oh! Um… hi." She responded as she saw him standing there. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, why?" Fred yelled over the pounding music.

Selene looked slightly taken aback at his friendly tone. "You're talking to me, that's all. You're not hexing me, or bothering me. Not that I don't… oh, well, never mind."

He looked down at her (as tall as Selene might be, he still had a good four inches on her) slowly, watching the way her eyes would flicker from the dancing, to the stage, to the seats, quickly to him and back again. The light bounced off her eyelashes, and accentuated the bright, forget-me-not blue of her eyes. She had very pale skin, as did her brother, but it didn't make her look like a vampire, which was probably good or otherwise the minute Lily met her she would be trying to get Selene to bite her. She kept shifting awkwardly from foot to foot, and didn't seem to want to meet Fred's gaze.

"I'm sorry." He admitted. "Hermione brought to my attention the fact that I've been wrong about you."

Her expression said it all. "Thanks; and its okay. I shouldn't really have hexed you whether it was enjoyable or not." She said, with a little smile.

"Oh, so you enjoyed it then? I didn't think Prefects were supposed to enjoy stuff like that."

Selene blushed again, and met Fred's eyes for longer than a split second. "It was just… new that's all. I never had to hex Zabini, no matter how annoying he got. Draco manages to tone him down a bit."

At the mention of her brother, Fred's face fell slightly. "So, you're on good terms with your brother then?"

Nodding, Selene bit her lip. "For the moment anyway."

There was an increasingly awkward silence, added to by the background screaming and heavy rock music thumping. Neither of them really knew what to say, they had just apologised to each other after three months worth of hatred after all. Selene kept shifting from foot to foot and Fred fiddled with his collar gingerly.

A second or so later their eyes inexplicably flickered towards each other, but they quickly dropped their gaze and Fred returned to mulling over why his twin brother had inherited all the dancing skills to be held in the Weasley family, along with Ginny.

"Do you want to dance?" He blurted out suddenly, and Selene turned to look at him in surprise.

"That's probably not a good idea; I have the dancing ability of Voldemort in a blindfold." Selene admitted, before wincing as Fred shuddered. "Oh! I'm sorry, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named."

Choosing not to mention her choice of nickname for the evil wizard, Fred grinned evilly and offered his hand to Selene. "I'm much, much worse. Come on; let's see who can take each other out first. Actually, tell you what, first person to actually give McGonagall a concussion wins a chocolate frog."

Reluctantly, Selene allowed herself to be dragged into the throng of screaming Weird Sisters fans. And there were an awful lot for a school of only around three hundred students.

"Come on…" Fred whined, stepping backwards for a second. "If I have to make a fool of myself you do too…"

Selene rolled her eyes and shrugged. "I guess."

"Great!" Clapping his hands together, Fred took one of her hands and shook himself mentally as he felt a little jolt in his stomach like he did earlier. They began to "dance", which for them was just moving from side to side and spinning each other around every so often. George caught Fred's eye and shot him a wink, before turning back to Angelina.

Selene giggled slightly as Fred stumbled backwards, and typically nearly knocking over a couple of fifth years, who shot a dirty look at the pair and went back to their rave. Raising his eyebrow, Fred took Selene's other hand and began to whirl her around madly, smirking at her obvious confusion and dizziness. She almost tripped over her own feet, but Fred managed to catch her before she face-planted the floor. Then she slipped slightly, which made him completely crack and he broke out into laughter at her state.

"It's not funny." She glared at him, but not coldly like she would have done before he apologised. It was slightly warmer. "I'm just… challenged in the dancing department."

"They should have a department like that at the Ministry." Fred nodded solemnly. "George could easily be head of department, and Angelina could be his deputy. Then we could just recruit everyone and everything with dancing feet."

Regaining her balance, Selene let herself be swept into a manic dance routine again. "Then they can place bans on people like us dancing. All in all, it'd be a very profitable enterprise."

"Oh, look at that." Fred gestured towards the side of the hall, where Percy was discussing something with Crouch and shooting dirty looks towards him and Selene's "dancing". "Percy disapproves of us trying to dance. Do you think we could get him into the idea?"

"Can he dance?" Selene stepped around a very frightened looking Professor Flitwick, who was getting chomped up by the crowd of screaming fans.

"Not to save his life, but he's not _quite _as bad as me."

As soon as the music had barely stopped, Selene was whisked off by a very excitable Cho Chang and Fleur Delacour. She sent a look she hoped looked apologetic to Fred as she was dragged off by her best friends.

"What eez going on?" Fleur smiled, her eyes twinkling. "'E likes you, _non_? Zat George Weezly?"

"That's not-" Selene started, but Cho began to squeal before she could get a word out.

"I TOLD YOU!" Cho looked like she was about to explode with pent-up matchmaking ability. "I told you he liked you!"

"Cho, that's not-"

"Sorry Sel, Cedric's waving me over!" Cho disappeared with a last squeak, leaving Selene alone with Fleur.

"George Weezly definitely like you, _ma cherie_." Fleur departed with a single nod and a suggestive wink.

Selene buried her head in her hands and wondered what in earth the world was coming to if her friends were convinced she fancied George not Fred and she couldn't get a bloody word in edgeways. Wait a second actually, did she just thi-

"I tell you Selene, Ronald can be so… _thick_!" Hermione planted herself onto the chair next to her friend. "Are you okay, by the way? George looked like he was trying to kill you, the way he spun you round like that."

"It wasn't George, it was Fred." Selene said, still trying to make sense out of her manic thoughts. "He apologised."

If Selene wasn't so confused, she would have laughed at Hermione's expression. "He apologised? Finally! I told him, I told him, he was being a hypocrite. Maybe Lee will be out of money by the end of the year."

"What do you mean; Lee will be out of money by the end of the year?" Selene asked in disbelief. "Sorry, I'm just a bit out of it. Fleur and Cho are both under the impression that I fancy George but I don't I-"

"You what?" Hermione's expression grew devious, like she was planning Draco's demise. "Come on Selene, you can tell me."

Selene shook her head. "I don't think I can Hermione."

"Of course you can!" Hermione threw her hands into the air. "I tell you what, you tell be what it was you stopped yourself from saying and I'll tell you why I'm so annoyed at Ron. I'm quite trustworthy, you know."

Finding her gaze wandering towards Fred's conversation with a red-haired girl, Selene reluctantly nodded at Hermione. "I'm not one hundred percent sure Hermione, and you can by no means tell anyone, not even Ron or Harry. Not Ginny, not George, not Fred, not anyone. This has to be strictly between us."

"My lips are sealed."

Selene took a deep breath and met Hermione's eyes. "I think… I…"

"What?" Hermione asked in an impatient tone. "I don't have all day."

"I think I like him." Selene whispered, so only Hermione could hear.

"Who? George?" Hermione inquired, interestedly.

"No, Fred." Conferred Selene, and even as she said it, she could feel her cheeks burning. "I think I fancy Fred Weasley."

There was complete silence between the two friends as Hermione began to process this new information. Her face went from confusion, to shock, to quiet contemplation, to amazement and to excitement all within a very short space of time.

"Merlin's pants!" She exclaimed; which shocked Selene considerably. "No, don't worry, I won't tell anyone. But, oh my gosh this is great!" Hermione observed Selene for a few moments. "Don't ask why, that would just be awkward. Oh, I'd better introduce you to Lily!"

The conversation changed topics abruptly. "Lily!" Hermione called. The red-haired girl who had been talking to Fred turned to them. She said something to Fred, then began to walk over to the chairs.

As the girl drew nearer, her features became more distinct. Her hair was almost a strawberry-blonde colour, but her hair was dark enough for her to be classified as a red-head. She had light green eyes, and was of about middling height. She was wearing red too, but her dress was much shorter than Angelina's.

"Lily, this is the girl I was telling you about. Selene, I'd like you to meet Liliana Tonks."

The red-haired girl grinned suddenly like the Cheshire Cat, and spun to Selene. "Mum told me about you." Liliana greeted. "I'm your cousin, aren't I? Call me Lily, by the way, only your dearest brother and my annoying mother call me Liliana." She scowled. "But at least I'm not Dora. Dora's my older sister, by the way. Left a few years back, she's in her last year of Auror training."

"Well, I'm Selene Malfoy. It's nice to meet you." Selene smiled warmly. "I'm sorry I haven't had the opportunity to talk to you before now, my parents are big on blood status."

"You look like my mother." Lily nodded, like she was confirming this suspicion. "Yes, and a bit like my sister when she's not messing around with herself. Anyway, it was nice to meet you! I'll write to my mother soon, tell her about meeting you and all of that. Sorry, I have to go; some hot guy from Durmstrang is waiting!"

And with that parting comment, she departed. Selene valiantly chose not to ask Hermione any of the momentous amount of questions she had about that last conversation.

"He's coming over here!" Hermione squealed into Selene's ear. "Fred's walking over! Come on, look up!"

Loath as she was to admit it, when Selene did look up a little piece of her confidence crumbled away. She had only realised about fifteen minutes ago, but she possibly might have fancied him for much longer. God damnit, it was all so confusing. It could've been in the Top Box back in August, or in the Entrance Hall in September. Maybe even when she hexed him. But what she definitely, definitely knew, was that she had unconditionally fallen for Fred Weasley.

**Oh. My. God. That was a lot better than I thought it would be. Also, I hope you enjoyed all of that! I can't dance myself, but I think I have a little sense of rhythm. **

**So, you are now reading Unconditionally, which I think is a much better name for this story. I might go back and edit the first three chapters if you think it needs it.**

**I only got two reviews for the last chapter; can I try and get five for this one? Bad or good, they're still reviews! And reviews = happy Eleanor = more updates and funny things!**

**And, as a little heads up, it shouldn't be much longer now. Thank you for sticking with this story for so long! You, my readers, reviewers, followers and favouriters, are my favourite people in the whole world! Let me know what you think about the prequel, and scenes from the first three books that you'd like to see in it!**

**I loved this chapter, it was really fun to write! My longest yet!**

**Eleanor xxx**


	20. Chapter 19: For The Love Of Merlin!

**Well, hello!**

**I'm sorry to report that I only got three reviews on my last chapter; oh come on guys! I know you read this story – I've recently passed 5,600 views! (Thank you so much for taking the time to read this story. If you didn't think the first three chapters were up to scratch, let me know!) – So can you review? PLEASE?**

**Okay, rant over. Thank you to Kacey, the prequel will take a bit of work, but I'm glad you think it's a good idea. If you have any suggestions, please tell me. **

** , short and sweet. Even short reviews mean the world to me. Thank you, and keep reading!**

**bellatrixD – heh heh, maybe the Weasley twins are smart enough to be in Ravenclaw themselves. I will add a bit of romance between George and Angelina, if I can think of any good ideas. And I have an awesome idea for how her parents find out…**

**This chapter has a bit of Frelene fluff (HOORAY! A SHIP NAME!) and Selene/Draco interaction that badly needed to be written. So, read and review! **

**And I don't own Harry Potter! Oh, godamnit it was a dream…**

Chapter 19: Oh, for the love of Merlin!

The fall out from Christmas was eventful, to say the least. First and foremost, everyone in Ravenclaw was convinced that something was going on between Selene and George Weasley, despite her many protests to the contrary. Then someone had announced that Apparition lessons would be starting at the end of January, and finally the teachers seemed to be lobbing even more work upon the sixth years.

"Six feet?" Cho gaped, looking down at her homework diary. "Six feet?"

"Think yourself lucky." Selene grimaced down at her pile of subject books darkly. "I have to produce a perfect Protean Charm by next Wednesday; Transfigure my fork into a bloody elephant by Tuesday and Snape's set 4000 words on the magical properties of Felix Felicis. Not to mention Fleur's still at my back most of the time wanting to review spells and charms she could use for the Second Task. But I think I'm coping." She added, after seeing Cho's incredulous expression. "I'm already halfway through Snape's essay."

Shrugging, Cho turned back to her six foot long essay for Hagrid, which was unusual. Normally the mild-mannered, easy-going Care Of Magical Creatures Professor only set the bare minimum of homework. Even his NEWT students had an easy time of it.

Within minutes, the noise in the common room had filtered down to a bare minimum, save for quiet conversations and discussions about homework and the occasional giggle from a first year. The level of noise made the Ravenclaw common room an easy place to work in, but unluckily these periods only lasted for about half an hour a day, sometimes an hour.

Selene glanced at her watch after she'd completed her essay, noting the time and quickly packing up her quills and spare parchment, casting a quick ink-drying charm on her homework. "I have Prefect patrols." She explained after Cho looked up in surprise. "I think I'm down on the third floor tonight."

Cho nodded quickly, and turned back to her abnormally long piece of parchment. Selene ran up the stairs to the sixth year girl's dormitory and tripped over someone's tie before she could reach her side of the room.

"Ouch, who put that there?" She muttered, stepping around the tie and shaking her head. "I swear, can they never put their stuff away? It looks like someone's set off a bomb in here."

Most of the beds weren't made, and pillows were strewn over the floor from a mad pillow fight they'd had a couple of days ago. There was a massive pile of blankets in the furthermost corner, most likely to prepare for their next "Blanket-Fort Weekend" and somehow Cho's full size poster of The Weird Sisters had been turned bright orange from somebody's spell experiment.

Escaping from the crazily decorated room as fast as she could, Selene walked back down the steps and over to the noticeboard, tracing her name across from the date to her patrol position for the night. The Dungeons, funnily enough. Did the Head Girl and Boy deliberately place her down there, knowing that no one would beat her up or anything?

She left the Ravenclaw common room, walking towards the stairs in quiet contemplation. Would it have made any difference if she was in Slytherin whether her family would have accepted her values? She doubted it; for one thing Selene probably wouldn't be a very good Slytherin, not being very cunning or pureblood-centric. Draco was a good Slytherin for those very reasons, he had snuck out of his common room so many times to meet his sister in the Trophy Room without getting caught if he wasn't cunning her father was a house-elf.

No one seemed to want to venture out of their common room that night. The night was dark and the lights were dim down in the Dungeon corridors. Selene only had to walk up and down a few times to confirm her suspicions that no one was there, and produced a shrunken-down book from her pocket, sat down by the wall and began to read.

"Oi!" Someone whispered, making Selene jump. She pocketed her book again and slowly stood up. "Come on, we need to hurry up!"

"I told you, no one patrols down here at this time, they're always gone by nine." Another voice whispered back, slightly louder. "And it's half nine already."

"We should at least try to be quiet." The first person protested, and Selene took a step forward to try and confirm the voice. "Slytherin's do sleep."

Realising who would be stupid and reckless enough to be down in the Dungeons at this time of night, Selene coughed.

"Was that you?" The second voice asked, slightly quieter.

"No, it was me." Selene spoke. "_Lumos._"

Quietly indignant, the faces of the Weasley twins stared back at Selene. She quickly swallowed, hoping that they didn't notice her reluctance to look at Fred. They were obviously shocked at her mysterious appearance.

"Hello Selene!" George recovered first and grinned innocently at the Prefect. "Lovely day I mean night, isn't it?"

"It's about minus three degrees down here." Selene blinked. "What are you two doing?"

If it was possible, the innocent looks they had became even more so. "We heard you were patrolling down here-" George began.

"-And I – we wanted to come and say hello!" Fred finished, his face turning slightly red. "Um, hello!"

"Hi. What are you really doing?" She asked again, guessing the correct answer in her mind. "Because if you wanted to come and say hello you would've done it at lunch, or dinner, or sometime that isn't stupid."

"But I wasn't at lunch or dinner!" Fred proclaimed dramatically. "No, I was doing, dare I say it, HOMEWORK!"

"No, you were at lunch and dinner it was George who wasn't."

The twins looked at Selene in complete and utter astonishment. Fred's jaw dropped open and George almost fell over. Never, in their whole life, had they found someone able to do anything like that before. Their mother could on occasion, but hardly ever. And now they were standing in front of a completely random girl who could tell them apart.

"Bloody hell." They said together. "We've always wanted to find someone who can tell us apart."

"But why are you actually down here? It's after hours; you should really be in your common room."

The pair shared a look, and they seemed to participate in something that resembled a mental conversation that included lots of eye-rolling and shocked expressions. Then, finally, they spoke out loud.

"We were going to turn Snape's office red." Fred admitted. "I mean, we will if you let us. Will you?"

Something in his voice made Selene melt like butter, and she was proud of herself for not collapsing in the middle of the corridor at his look. Oh, for the love of Merlin this was not good. She could barely compose herself around him, let alone hold a decent conversation with Fred. And now Hermione wasn't around to talk for her, to stop Selene making a fool of herself. It was like her tongue had been glued to the roof of her mouth when she stood there, saying absolutely nothing and feeling a little bit embarrassed.

"Are you okay?" George cut in, looking concerned. "You've gone speechless on us again, haven't you? Come on Freddie, we need to get her to the Hospital wing, there might be something seriously wrong with her!"

Selene regained her speech just in time to prevent this. "No, I'm fine!" She blurted out suddenly. "Oh, yeah, sure, go turn his office red. It'll be funny."

With a grin and a wink, George departed for Snape's office. Fred hung back for a couple of moments, rubbing the back of his neck gingerly. "Erm… I'm sorry if we get you into trouble." He apologised, feeling slightly foolish. "Uh, yeah. That's all."

"Um, yeah, that's okay. I mean, not the whole getting me in trouble part, that's not okay, but the apology part, that's okay. No, I don't mind, Snape hates me anyway, but… oh screw it, its okay."

A smile twitched at the corners of Fred's mouth. "You seemed a bit lost for words there Selene. Are you sure you're okay?"

She could see, in her mind's eye, her face turning a delightful beetroot red. Damn her genes and her constant blushing. She blushed at pretty much everything, but she seemed to turn a tomato colour every time she was around Fred. And knowing her belated luck, he probably noticed.

"I'm fine." Selene nodded to add to this statement. "Are you? I mean, it's pretty cold down here and you just called me Selene so…" She mentally whacked herself at the ultra-obvious comment.

"What? You want me to call you Malfoy again, Malfoy?" Fred asked, with a smirk. "That won't be hard."

"No, it's fine, just a bit… unexpected. So, er, can I call you Fred?" Selene stumbled over her words, willing herself to stay composed. "That is, if you're okay with that, I mean. Um… yeah."

Stepping forward, Fred positioned himself so he was directly face-to-face with Selene. "That's fine, but I'd rather you called me love."

"Um, sorry but no, I think I'll try Fred first." Selene found the right words for the first time. "Have fun, Fred. I'll see you… um, sometime."

It took her a few minutes to calm her breathing, and another couple of seconds to force herself to look normal again. She had another twenty minutes of this, hopefully Fred would take longer. She couldn't really face seeing him again tonight; she'd probably done enough damage with that short conversation.

"Selene?" Selene looked around for the person who had said her name, her eyes coming to rest on the corner.

"Draco? What are you doing here?" Her voice was high-pitched and panicky. If he was there, right there, he probably saw her talking to the twins.

"Why were you talking to them?" Draco asked; his tone blank and devoid of emotion. "The Weasley twins, why were you talking to them like that? Like you were… friends?"

"Draco, I-"

"You know exactly what I mean!" Draco snapped suddenly. "Blatantly standing there, in the middle of the corridor, talking to people way below your status! More then talking, that filthy blood traitor had his paws all over you, Salazar, he was _flirting _with you, and you just stand there like you _don't mind!_"

"What if I don't mind?" Selene found herself saying. "I… Draco, can you just leave me alone for once?"

"But Sele-"

"Draco, what do you know?" She suddenly asked, her patience snapping. "Yes, my best friends are muggle-born, I wanted to take Muggle Studies, I went to the Yule Ball with a Weasley and now I fancy a Weasley, but so what? Mother and Father just want me to marry Theodore Nott, have a happy little pure-blood bigot family with him and never question anything. But have they ever considered what I want? Because I want to be happy."

Draco's face twisted into a sneer. "Why can't you just be normal, like Mother wants you to be? A normal, Slytherin daughter. But no, you had to be in Ravenclaw, like the smart-arse you are, question everyone's motives and never accept your life. I did a long time ago, and I've never been happier."

His obvious lie crumbled something inside Selene's mind. She might want all of that. She might want happiness, and love and people who wouldn't sell her out for her money, but first and foremost she was an older sister. And she had a duty to her younger brother, one that couldn't be ignored.

"I'm sorry." Selene wrapped her arms around her brother's tall figure slowly. "I'm sorry I could never be the person our parents want me to be. And I'm sorry that the decisions I've made have hurt you, or given you the idea that I'd give you up. You know I love you, and that I'd never do that, and for that reason I hope you'll understand when I ask you not to tell Father or Mother. I'll sort things out soon, I promise."

"I love you 'Lene." He murmured into her blue robes. "I just don't want to be alone in this. What father wrote to us about… to be honest, it scares me. He normally hardly ever keeps the information that secret. It has to be bad news, or something that will affect us."

"Drake, I promise that the news won't be bad for you, or for me. It'll probably just be something new Father has against the Weasleys or Harry, okay? He is always on the lookout for information of that kind, no matter the feelings I have against it. Now, you'd better get off to your common room before I have to give you detention."

Draco stood back from his sister's hug reluctantly. "You wouldn't do that." He reminded, smiling properly, not the forced smirk he wore among his cronies. "You're too soft. You're like a big, fluffy white marshmallow."

Rolling her eyes fondly, Selene watched her brother walk back to his common room. He wasn't the happiest if kids, Harry and Ron didn't know how lucky they were, surrounded by real friends, not just people around for their money.

Fred's P.O.V.

Selene. If only she didn't reduce to a stuttering mess every time she saw him. It was his own fault after all, being such a git and refusing to see her as a person, but just as a pureblood bitch. And now she was probably terrified of him if her actions were worth thinking about.

Every time he thought that, Fred felt compelled to whack himself with the nearest thing available, even if it was a huge library tome. Why, why, why did he have to be such an idiot sometimes? She was the opposite of everyone else in her belated family, sweet, kind, and now apparently her friends were busy setting her up with George.

His twin brother was luckier than he knew. If George had a chance, then normally Fred would be supportive and even help him along the road a little if he could. But this, this was different. He couldn't just stand by and watch, and wouldn't ever consider helping. Because, for once, he'd screwed things up before they'd even begun. Way to go. And Angelina had dumped him too, not that he was telling anyone that.

Thinking back to their last conversation, which had alerted Fred to her panic whenever she was around him, he very nearly hit himself with his wand. Had he seriously asked her to call him 'love'? Seriously? This wasn't how all those Muggle bloody fairy tales went. Basic plotline: girl meets boy, boy meets girl, and they fall in love, all 'Happily Ever After'. Not girl meets boy, boy acts like a git then apologises, and girl becomes terrified of boy and goes off with boy's twin brother.

"Are you okay Mr Weasley?" Professor Flitwick squeaked, his head appearing from above the desk. "Not having any trouble with those Cheering Charms are we?"

"Oh, no, I'm fine thank you Professor." Fred shook his head and heaved a sigh of relief as the tiny Professor walked away. They were supposed to be focusing on an area of the curriculum they had previously struggled with and work to improve on them. As he'd basically failed most of his first four years of Charms, he had a lot of ground to cover.

He poked the hedgehog he was supposed to be 'Cheering' in annoyance, and the little spiky guy glared back up at him. "Great, now you hate me too."

"Why are you talking to a hedgehog?" Lee quirked an eyebrow at his friend's attitude.

"Never mind." Fred groaned and let his mind wander from the indignant animal, his eyes landing on the girl at the very front of the classroom who was successfully casting a Protean Charm on something or other. Professor Flitwick stopped at her desk and made a few comments, but evidently deciding that it was probably perfect, gave her thirty points to Ravenclaw. Snape wasn't the only guy to favour his students sometimes.

"Selene…" The Asian witch from next to her poked her friend anxiously. She was whispering, but her voice carried over the classroom considerably. "He's staring at you!"

"Shut up Cho." Selene muttered, but she quickly glanced behind her and Fred saw a glimpse of her face, almost bright red. "That's not even him Cho, he's Fred."

"Yeah, right." Fred could hear Cho rolling her eyes from here. "Fred hates you, remember?"

Selene shook her head quickly, glancing behind her again. "It's kind of a long story."

She looked behind her for a third time, and Fred caught her gaze momentarily sending what he hoped was a friendly grin in her direction. But no, she coloured even more, if that was possible, and managed a weak smile before turning back to Cho. This time Fred did whack himself with his wand.

"Shit." He swore, poking the hedgehog again. "Come on, cheer up or I'll use you to prank Filch."

The hedgehog looked up at him, obviously not amused and proceeded to eat Fred's Charms textbook.

"Okay, if you're not going to co-operate." Sending a glare in the direction of the little animal, Fred rolled his eyes and levitated it to one side, before turning to Lee. "Why are hedgehogs so annoying?"

Lee shrugged, containing his laughter and closed his book with a snap. "That girl down there, Selene right? The girl George went to the Yule Ball with. If I'm not completely mistaken, then you like her."

"How'd you guess?" Fred asked sarcastically, giving the hedgehog two fingers. "Forget about it, she hates me. Right idiot I am."

Not seeming convinced but nevertheless obeying Fred, Lee checked his watch and let out a little groan. "Another half an hour."

"No fear!" Fred grinned, producing a brightly wrapped sweet from his pocket. "The prank-master is here!"

Lee let out a stifled chuckle at the horrendous rhyme as Fred un-wrapped the sweet, placing it on the desk in front of them. Everyone else was too preoccupied with their spells to notice what Fred was up to, and he took full advantage of this. "_Aguamenti._" He muttered, pouring a jet stream of water over the sweet and shifting his chair back slightly, motioning for Lee to do the same. "We developed these a couple of weeks ago." He explained as the sweet began to fizz. "Remember that Muggle popping candy you showed us? This is a slightly more explosive version."

The desk began to pop loudly, attracting the attention of the class. It slowly began to emit steam, then began to lightly smoke, before it rocketed up to the top of the class with a loud bang. Some girls, including Selene's friend Cho screamed at the bang, but the majority of the small group were raptly staring at the runaway desk.

Without warning, the desk catapulted down to ground level again, then spontaneously combusted in a cloud of dust that smelled like burning eggs. There were a few seconds of incredulous silence before some began to laugh, and Fred stood back to smirk at his handy work.

"Mr Weasley!" Professor Flitwick squeaked over the laughter. "That was extremely dangerous! Detention tonight, at seven. I can't believe your audacity!"

Fred couldn't find it within himself to care as they left the classroom, and he purposefully caught Selene's eye. When she looked up at him through her eyelashes, he could swear she was holding in laughter. But before he could catch her, she was moved out of the room by Cho. Maybe he could sympathise with Harry on this, but at least Selene wasn't attached to those Ravenclaws 24/7. Make the best of things, like his father would. And now he knew where she patrols on Prefect duty, he could exploit that if the worst came to the worst.

What was the world coming to? He had to make detailed, deliberate plans simply to speak to someone. Not just anyone, a someone though. He had to pay attention to every miniscule detail of her timetable, and luckily he shared three lessons with her. Unfortunately one of those was run by a fearsome ex-Auror, one by the squeaky head of Ravenclaw and one by the stern Professor McGonagall.

For the love of Merlin, this was futile. It's stupid, stupid. The countless times he found his mind wandering to her every day, or just mulling over that weird conversation they had in the Dungeons. Spending a couple of seconds berating himself for things he couldn't help. You can't turn back time, after all.

Selene's P.O.V.

"Did he just blow up that desk?" Cho squealed in excitement. After they had walked out of Charms, she had insisted on running over every single thing that had occurred. "You might be really inexperienced but you must be doing something right Sel, he couldn't keep his eyes off you!"

Selene tried to outwardly keep an impression of boredom, but inside she was even more hyperactive than Cho. There had been some down points to that lesson, one being her deep blush when she turned around to look at him. Oh, holy Rowena, she wished someone would make it easier for her to get over him. He was everything she was against, as a studious Ravenclaw Prefect. Charming, prankster, mischievous. And why would he even look at her twice, a pale, geeky, clumsy girl with the romantic ability of a Hippogriff on steroids? The Yule Ball had been a one-off, she kept insisting to herself. Just a way to apologise. But when she did manage to meet his eyes it was like he was smashing down the mental walls that she kept up around almost everyone, piece by piece. His smile just kind of made her melt inside, a lopsided grin that was out of place on anyone except him. Cho had talked about how she felt around Cedric, but Selene doubted she felt so damn shy around him. It would take her years to build up the courage for a simple conversation if she didn't shape up soon.

"Hmm…" Selene summarised her thoughts. "I… I don't think so Cho. For one thing, he's Fred, not George. George takes Herbology."

"No." Cho said, definite. "That is definitely George. Fred is only on barely speaking terms with you."

Selene nodded outwardly, not really listening, but inside quoted directly from the conversation. And how could she even tell them apart from such a distance? It was easy when Fred wore a permanent sneer when he saw her, but now he was acting normal towards her, or as normal as you could get when you spend your Charms lessons staring at someone.

Cho opened her _Daily Prophet _and gasped at the article inside. Selene peered over her shoulder in interest, only to step backwards into Roger Davies when she saw the headline.

_Dumbledore's Giant Mistake_

"No." Selene scanned the article. "What the- attacked by a Hippogriff? It wasn't even that bad a scratch; they healed it in no time! Draco was just playing it to get sympathy. And how is he even talking to that… that _harpy_! She's not even allowed on school grounds."

Selene looked around wildly, wondering whether someone was going to jump out from behind a tapestry and shout "JANUARY FOOLS!" It just didn't make sense; Draco wasn't one to go as low as to destroy the reputations of two perfectly nice people, and good teachers.

She wondered whether her parents knew about this, and if they did whether they cared. No, that was a stupid question. Of course not, Father had alluded to 'that great oaf's' incompetence so many times, he was probably celebrating with a glass of expensive champagne as she thought.

"Sorry Cho, I need to go." Selene apologised, setting off at a fast walk towards the library, and where she thought Hermione would be. Cho wouldn't understand why she was obsessing over the miniscule details, but Hermione had the ability to realise why and help her to stop. Even though many Ravenclaws considered Hagrid a joke, why does that give them leeway to boycott against him, even if he was half-giant?

Draco had gone too far this time. She couldn't stop him heckling muggle-borns and Gryffindors, but she did have enough power to prevent him from downright destroying people's careers and reputations. And he knew that, and if he was human, then he should feel some small scarp of remorse.

She opened the door to the library a little too forcefully, and Madam Pince hushed her loudly, glaring at the girl who had the audacity to slam the door open. Murmuring an apology, Selene took the route through the History section of the library, looking around to try and spot Hermione among the bookshelves.

It seemed like everyone was at lunch, because Selene was easily the only one in the library. She stayed for a few extra minutes, checking the corners of the library in vain hope to find her Gryffindor friend. But she eventually gave up and left the room, wondering where in the Founder's Hogwarts Hermione was.

Alone with her thoughts, Selene's mind switched automatically to her predicament with a certain Weasley. It was bloody confusing, the craziness that seemed to crowd her mind nowadays. Ever since Christmas night, to be exact. Ever since she realised…

"Calm down." Selene told herself. "Calm the heck down."

There's no point in trying something that you won't ever be able to complete, and Selene realised that with a pang. Her mind was just mad, filled with memories of times he'd smiled at her, talked to her, etc. etc. Thank Rowena no one could read minds, which she knew of. Her thoughts would be much to embarrassing to explain in any amount of detail.

Defiantly ignoring the larger part of her mind that was devising a way to get her to go out with him, Selene walked around the corridor and walked right into someone.

**And so ends Chapter 19! **

**And my first cliff-hanger! I hate** **them so much, and I was trying to club myself to death with my copy of **_**Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire **_**as I wrote it.**

**But I'm still alive. So read and review!**

**Eleanor xxx **


	21. Chapter 20: Love Screws Me Up

**Hey ho!**

**This chapter is a little shorter, only about 3,000 words, but it didn't require much addition and I think it works well the way I've left it. And I really wanted to get on with the Second Task; let me tell you, you won't suspect a thing, I hope…**

**And to my reviewer: Anno, thanks for taking the time to review, and I'm glad you like my story. I hate cliff-hangers too, but they are kind of useful.**

**Thank you to my new followers and/or favouriters! Enjoy, and review!**

Chapter 20: Love Screws Me Up

As if this day couldn't get any worse, now Fred had to contend with being in close proximity with the girl he was making plans to talk to without any warning.

"I'm so sorry!" Selene blushed crimson and pushed her hair out of her face, taking a few steps back from Fred. "I wasn't looking where I was going."

"Uh…" Fred gazed, transfixed with her eyes. "It's okay." He found himself saying, feeling a little bit detached with the real world. It was okay… it was completely okay. It was so adorable, the way she blushed…

Moving her gaze to her bag, Selene quickly picked it up from where it fallen, as the sunlight filtering through the window casually glanced off her hair, making it shine an almost dark blonde colour. Fred moved forwards unconsciously, standing so he was only a few inches away from her and closing the gap that Selene had produced when she moved backwards.

When she looked back at him again, she jumped backwards at their close proximity and knocked a suit of armour over in her shock. It landed on the floor with a resounding clang and very narrowly missed a very indignant Mrs Norris. "Argh!" Selene murmured, turning around to examine her handy work. "_Reparo_." She waved her wand and the armour fixed itself and attached itself to its pedestal again. "Sorry, I have a bit of a habit about breaking things."

"Never would have guessed." Fred joked, looking between the spot where the suit of armour was on the floor and Selene. "You okay though? It looked a little bit… destructive."

"I'll live." Selene shrugged and shifted her bag so it was higher up on her shoulder. "Sorry about that again, I never seem to be able to keep myself from breaking anything for any long period of time. I almost completely destroyed Professor Flitwick's office once." Her voice trailed off, like she was remembering something.

"I was on my way to the Great Hall, if you wanted to walk down with me?" Fred asked, crossing his fingers in his pocket as he did. In fact, he'd been about to annoy Madam Pince, but details didn't matter. "That is, if you're not busy or anything."

"Sure." Selene replied, sounding pleasantly surprised. Yet another piece of information to add to the long pile of propaganda against his theory that she hated him.

"So, I hardly know anything about you, apart from the fact that you have a younger brother and you play Chaser on the Quidditch team." Fred began, taking his hands out of his pockets and uncrossing his fingers. "What's your name? What's your favourite colour? What Quidditch team do you support?"

"Erm… Well, you know my name, I would hope. My favourite colour's blue and I support the Holyhead Harpies." Selene risked a sideways glance at Fred. "Don't look at me like that; I know your little sister supports them too."

"Chudley Cannons." Fred conferred proudly and Selene sniggered behind her hand. "Hey, they might not be the best but I believe that one day-"

"-Their Chaser will die from getting hit in the head with the Quaffle?" Selene guessed aloud. "They have no sense of direction, and their Seeker is pitiful."

"So, what else… favourite food? Favourite book? Favourite subject? By the way, I hate History of Magic so if you say History of Magic I will never talk to you again." Fred said seriously, looking at her gravely.

Selene ignored this comment. "I've read so many books I can't give you a favourite, sorry. And my favourite subject is Charms."

"Charms?" Fred scoffed. "Now I know, you're _that _girl."

"Excuse me? That girl? You can talk, I bet your favourite subject is Defence or something."

They continued in much the same way, laughing and joking about small, insignificant areas of their lives on their way to the Great Hall. Eventually, Selene's reservations and shyness faded away, and she forgot completely about the fact that she fancied the guy she was in deep conversation with, whilst Fred noted down everything she said, just in case. Eventually they dropped into a heated debate about Quidditch teams and whether The Chudley Cannons would ever improve before they went completely defunct. Selene was a strong supporter of the All-Witch Welsh Quidditch team the Holyhead Harpies and ignored Fred's attempts to recruit her to the Cannon fan club.

"I've supported them since I was two Fred, you can't deviate my opinion either way now." She insisted, giggling slightly at his annoyed expression. "Oh, calm down, I'm sure the Cannons improve _one day_."

"Shut up." Fred groaned, ignoring her laughter. Now he was really starting to understand her, she was definitely the complete opposite of everything he had originally thought about her. She seemed to truly support the Holyhead Harpies, which sucked for him and his long-term relationship with her. What's more, she didn't reference them as snarky gits, which he found hard to believe. "Okay, don't tell Ron I told you this, but you are probably right, they won't ever win the Cup again, but we can still dream, right?"

"You can dream." Selene said in faux sombre voice, nodding gravely. "You can dream, but it's never going to happen."

"Why you little-"Fred gasped, putting a hand to her forehead. "Are you feeling okay? I didn't think you had it in you to bring the reputation of one of the finest Quidditch teams of all time. It seems you'll be harder then I thought."

Too late, Fred realised what he had said. And there was nothing on hand to whack himself with too.

Selene looked at him a little funny, with her eyebrows raised and her eyes wide, her lips slightly parted. It was an expression full of humour, but it was a little hesitant. Reluctant, even. Her mouth might be amused, but her eyes were quiet. The eyes are a window to the soul, someone had once said. And this had never been truer.

There wasn't a mirror on hand, but their expressions mirrored one another. But Fred's eyes were alight with something, something that might, in a different situation, at a different time, might have looked a little bit like love.

"Freddie?" George poked his twin with the feathered end of his quill pen sharply. "Are you okay in there? Hello? Earth to Fred Weasley! Requesting immediate contact, pronto!"

"Huh?" Fred looked up from the piece of parchment he had been staring at. "What? Has anyone discovered teleportation? Because that is something I could do with. No more endless walking around the place, waiting for something to happen or for Dumbledore to finally lift the anti-apparition wards."

George shook his head sadly and gazed deeply into the fire that blazed in the Gryffindor common room fireplace. "You have it bad, don't you?"

"What the bloody hell are you talking about?" Turning to his twin in confusion, Fred regarded George like he was about to burst into song. "I'm just upset, that's all. If Ange wanted to dump me, she could choose to let me down gently, not just walk up to me after dinner in full view of all of Gryffindor and casually say 'I'm dumping you'."

"Everyone thinks I'm clueless when it comes to women and that isn't entirely untrue, but I can tell when my twin brother is obsessing over something, especially when it's a someone." George alluded, nodding like he knew all. "Ludo Bagman maybe? No that isn't it, you would have said all your inner monologue out loud. And it's not Angelina, so don't even mention it. But it might be someone else… someone I know quite well…"

"Oh. That." Fred said, without feeling, in a monotone. "Pull your mind out of the gutter George; I am not obsessing over a girl. No, I'm just trying to think of a way to get Bagman without getting caught out."

Shrugging, George turned back to the piece of parchment he was scribbling on. "Just admit it, you've fallen for her."

"Fallen for who?" Fred asked tartly, doing his best Professor McGonagall expression. "Pigwidgeon?"

"Oh, don't tell me you don't know her, you have a permanently glazed look in your eyes whenever she walks into the room. Not to mention you basically obsessively stalk her when you bribe one of the Prefects to show you the patrol list. No, you have no idea who she is…"

Fred was gripped with a sudden sort of panic. "I have a permanently glazed look in my eyes when I see her? You have got to be kidding me. No, I can't be that obvious."

Nodding knowingly, George smiled. "I think you like her. No, actually, I think I'm going to go one up on that and say that I think you fancy her."

It hit Fred like their father's car had once hit the Whomping Willow. In other words, very hard and very fast. Now he really was in the deep end. Never in all of his sixteen and a bit years of life had something hit him like this. If it was a physical object he'd have a very nasty bruise on the side of his head. This couldn't be happening. He'd flirt with her yes, like he did with every girl this side of Mexico (excluding those in Slytherin of course) but he couldn't actually, properly like her. It was only early December that those all-important words had been spoken, and it was only Christmas that he had apologised. He'd felt something for her then, but he had dismissed it as just a friendly feeling, nothing more. And now he wanted more than just friendship.

"Oh Godric." He swore, flopping backwards on his armchair and staring up at the ceiling. "I fancy Selene Malfoy."

Those words made it sound final, like he couldn't move on from her now, he couldn't pretend that they were, and would remain, friends. Because every time he even looked at her, he would feel a pang of longing. He'd have to watch as she dated, got married, have kids… And now he was worrying over something that probably wouldn't happen for years. And he wasn't the kind of person to let someone go after realising something as momentous as that.

"I told you!" George exclaimed triumphantly. "And I knew it! This means we don't have to just focus on Bagman and his cheating arse, we can concentrate on setting you up with a certain girl whose initials are SM."

Selene's P.O.V.

_It's going to be okay._

_ It has to be okay, it must be okay. I don't want to be here, I can't be here without me breaking down in helpless tears. The way the people look at me as I walk through the halls of the Ministry, clutching my mother's clammy hand, it makes me feel so helpless, so beyond help, it makes me want to curl up into a ball and wait for it to be over._

_ Because I cannot face this. I have never been courageous, even a little bit brave. I can't meet anyone's eyes. If I do, then it will feel like everything I know is lost. I will never see my father again._

_ Draco is too young to understand, and my parents too busy to care. So, in affect, I am alone. At least, I think, at least Draco does not have to witness this. He is far away, far away. He is free from this. Maybe if my parents were merciful, they would take this memory from me, delete it. _

_ "Mrs Malfoy." Someone says sternly, without pity and without anger. It's monotonous, final. Two ways. I pray for one, but my heart says I must resign myself to the other. "I understand you have brought the witness?"_

_ "That is correct." My mother nods to me, barely. "My eldest. I understand you need my wand?"_

_ "Twelve inches… oak… phoenix feather. I will be holding onto this. You will be returned it naturally, but it remains to be seen if your husband returns to wherever you disgusting Death Eaters live." The someone sneers, and I clutch Mother's hand ever more tightly, squeezing my eyes tight shut._

_ It is times like this when I have never loved my mother more. She holds her head up high, she refuses to back down. Her voice is cordial, not polite. "That will do, I think." And with a gentle tug on my hand, we walk again. _

_ This hall is black, reflective and it has the barest décor I have seen, possibly ever. It is simply a black marble hall, with un-effective lights dimly brightening it. Draco will not remember this walk, this trial, my father having to plead for a chance at watching us grow up. He is only twenty-seven, my mother twenty-six. This is no trial, this is a curse. There is no way I can have my father back after this._

_ I know more than they know. I know what my father stands accused of. I know who he has killed. And I know that, ultimately, he is wrong. I stood and watched while one of my father's greatest friends and he massacred people who were fighting for their life, the same as they were, so I cannot condone their actions. But Mother has taught me how to push past that, how to pretend that I am normal, that inside I am not screaming and crying, I am not wishing that I had a normal family. That my parents will always love me, even after what I know I must do._

_ "Lucius Abraxas Malfoy, you stand accused of murdering and torturing Muggles, Muggle-borns and those who attempted to prevent you from doing so. You are accused of fighting alongside He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named to rid the world of Muggles. How do you plead?"_

_ "Not guilty." My father's voice is strong, and the rehearsed speech plays in my mind. He was Imperiused, as was my mother. He was forced into service. He was not thinking for himself. He was not acting consciously. My mother was not acting of her own accord. _

_ "Witness for the defence, Miss Selene Malfoy, daughter of the accused." The Minister reads out, and my mother places a gentle but firm hand in the small of my back. This must be new for them, I surely must be the youngest witness to ever grace these halls. _

_ I almost, stop, almost falter, but I keep my head down and I let my long hair hang in my face. I don't want to see them, the cold glares that will be staring down at me when I look up. Even young girls are possibly corruptible in this damaged world. And maybe three is not young for the Ministry. I don't feel young._

_ "Is it true that your father was in the service of You-Know-Who?" The Minister asks me. _

_ I nod. I can't trust myself to speak. If I do, then I will betray my family's trust, their façade will falter and the truth will be out. Maybe it's best and I can pretend that I did do the right thing. But outside, in my mind, I have been told what I must say. And so I open my mouth._

_ "He had no choice." I find myself saying. "He had no choice." Like I have no choice now. "He-"My voice falters and I risk a glance at my father. He doesn't smile, but then he never does. He knows, and he nods at me, knowing the words that will come out of my mouth next. "-he was under the Imperius Curse."_

_ My words are high, scared. I am forced to say them. I do not want to, but I must. I want to say how he murdered those brothers in front of me, but I can't. I cannot bring myself to say those words, to choke them out like I so badly want to. It is my fault, I am not brave. I can never be brave. _

_ I am helpless._

Selene's book dropped from her limp grasp and landed with a crash on the floor. Hastily flushing red, Selene murmured an apology and retrieved it, determinedly avoiding the curious gazes of her friends. She hadn't told anyone, not even Cho, about the worse memories. The ones where she felt detached, helpless. Aloof, cold. Too old to be a three year old. To young to be sixteen, almost seventeen.

That didn't matter now. Voldemort was dead and gone. For a long time. There was no way that mattered now. Father was free and out of Azkaban.

And now she had a book to read and someone to think about. Opening the book to the slightly crumpled page she had been skim-reading, Selene traced one of the faded words, wondering how her life had changed on such a very short space of time. If you had told her this time last year that she would have a friend who completely understood her, had created a strange kind of allegiance with Harry Potter of all people and was freaking out over Fred Weasley, then she would have raised an eyebrow and directed them to the Medical Wing. But, all in all, life wasn't that different.

After all, she had bigger things to think about. The Second Triwizard task, for one. Fleur, although she seemed aloof and above everyone at the best of times, was not confident with her magical ability and often needed support as well as physical help. And tonight, the night before the task, would be the hardest for her.

"Excuse me?" Professor Flitwick spoke and Selene looked up from her book, sharing a curious glance with Cho. This was unexpected; normally by this time Flitwick was marking essays or whatever he chose to do in the evenings. "Can I please speak to Miss Chang?"

Cho shrugged at Selene, but obediently walked over to where the tiny Professor Flitwick stood in the corner of the common room. No one thought very much of this, and went back to their homework and other activities.

Sending an encouraging glance back at her friend, Cho left the room with the Head of Ravenclaw and disappeared from sight. Selene stared after where she had vanished for some time, pondering a question in her mind. Why Cho? Cho had never had a detention, and had actually been the favourite for Ravenclaw prefect before Flitwick chose Selene. And even now, no one was completely sure why he chose Selene over Cho. But why now, of all times if he needed to talk to her? Of all times…

Something clicked in the back of her mind and she sprang up, leaving the book on the chair. She had to warn Fleur.

**Ha ha ha ha! As much as I hate cliff-hangers, they are fun to write.**

**And let me tell you, what will appear next chapter is unexpected. I'm sorry I made things move so fast, but I needed to for the plot. **

**I will see you soon!**

**Eleanor xxx**

**P.S. My friend Vivian has recently joined Fanfiction, she's called The soulless ones. Check her out, but don't be perturbed by her freaky bio!**


	22. Chapter 21: Red and Blue

**Thank you to my lovely reviews: **

**Kacey; my jam-packed life knows no boundaries itself, don't beat yourself up. I should be doing homework right now but oh well. Enjoy this chapter!**

**And… , here is the update! Enjoy :D**

**Lastly bellatrixD, don't know if the ending of this counts as a cliffhanger or not but if it does then I promise there won't be another for a while. PROMISE! Go Quidditch!**

**READ AND REVIEW!**

Chapter 21: Red and Blue

"So, the thing I will most miss, that's what I must retrieve?" Fleur's eyes widened and she began to pace, backwards and forwards, backwards and forwards, so repeatedly that she must have started to wear a hole in the floor. Her long, silvery-blonde hair whipped around each time she turned, and her blue eyes burned with realisation. "Who would I most miss?"

Selene's eyes drooped slightly, but she managed to keep herself awake. She had been with Fleur for the last four hours, holed up in an empty classroom, trying to figure out who Fleur would miss the most. "You've asked that question about four million times already, repeating it won't make it any easier to decipher."

It was already almost time for the Second Task, about six o'clock in the morning. Selene hadn't been able to catch Fleur the evening before, and had promptly been hauled out of bed at two in the morning. There were some downsides to French girls, and their irregular sleeping pattern was one of them. Infamously, Fleur and Leanne had once dragged Selene to an all-night party held by Leanne's eldest brother, for no reason other than simply because Fleur wanted to. Looking back on it all, Fleur had the student population of Beauxbatons under her little finger.

Suddenly, Fleur slumped down in the chair opposite Selene, massaging her temple with two delicate fingers. "You English are so annoying." She complained, looking out of the window to the dark sky. "England is cold, wet, boring, how could you choose this place over France Selene?"

Selene giggled at Fleur's inability to like England. "It's Scotland, technically Fleur. And I like it here, it's got amazing scenery, the food is amazing and I've got most of my friends here too." She explained, but then her voice faltered. "It's…"

"Invigorating?" Fleur guessed, and Selene nodded. She forgot how to say that in French. She forgot. She should really have expected it, after four years in England, but it still came as a shock. She had forgotten how to say something.

"Are you sure it's not that George Weezly?" Fleur asked slyly, smiling empathetically.

This came as quite a surprise to Selene, who had momentarily forgotten that both Fleur and Cho were obsessed over her apparent attraction to George. "Fleur," Selene bit her lip, trying to think of a way to say this that wouldn't immediately hype her French friend up. "it's not George."

"Ah, you are joking, _non_?" Fleur asked, speaking in English. "You are veery see-through."

"Transparent." Selene corrected, cracking a smile at her friend's weird English. "You are very transparent."

Fleur's smile disappeared, and she turned to Selene with fear evident in her expression. "You do not think…" She exclaimed in a French accent. "You do not think you will not be chosen?"

"I'm still here; Flitwick didn't call me with Cho." Selene flushed red and hid her head in her hands. "Um… but thanks I guess."

"Phew, I do not know what I would do weethout you _ma cherie_." Fleur's expression relaxed. "You are _ma meilleure ami, non?_"

"But if it's not me, then who is it? Who would you most miss Fleur?"

Neither of them spoke for minutes, Fleur resuming her pacing and Selene wordlessly gazing out of the window and watching the disappearing moonlight bounce off the Black Lake. That lake held a lot of good and bad memories, from that disastrous time Cho decided to teach Selene how to swim to the enjoyable Saturday morning that had first alerted Cho to Cedric's existence.

Smiling slightly at the memory, Selene moved her attention to the Forbidden Forest, just visible in front of the sunrise. From what Draco had told her about that detention her shared with Harry, Ron and Hermione back in his first year, it was downright terrifying in there, all dark and dangerous creatures… Selene shuddered and bit her lip thoughtfully. Why was there even a forest if no one was supposed to go in it?

Fleur finally broke the silence with a little exclamation of realisation. "You don't think Selene… no, they couldn't… they…"

Her face paled and her hands began to shake as she looked out over the lake. Clenching her hands into fists to stop them shaking, Fleur clutched the side of the window for support. "Is there any chance the hostages may… die?" She choked out to her friend, not looking at Selene. "Any chance at all?"

"I…I…" Selene looked around wildly for inspiration. "I don't know Fleur." She decided on, truthfully. But as soon as she said the words, her eyes widened. Cho… and Krum's hostage - that would have to be Hermione. She was facing losing two of her best friends today.

"Is there any chance?" Fleur turned around and faced Selene, tears sparkling in her eyes. "Please tell me, you must, you have to."

Not trusting herself to speak, Selene nodded, feeling the first few tears leak out. She brushed them away furiously; if she couldn't be brave then she was not going to break down like she felt she was about to. She was going to be strong like her mother, her role model.

Then Fleur began to sob, stepping forward to wrap her arms around Selene. The last scrap of confidence, resolution and control left her, and the tears began to fall freely as she clung to the only real friend that was here.

Selene stood for a second limply, her mind set on cheering her friend up and persuading her that the hostages would be okay, that Professor Dumbledore wouldn't let them be hurt, that the Tournament was completely safe. But then the desperate sobbing of Fleur and her own fractured belief got the better of her and her self-control shattered, leaving a terrified, destroyed girl that was underneath her diligent exterior. The tears that she had been told must never fall, Malfoy rule number three, fell and there was nothing to hold them back.

The complete and utter hopelessness that Selene had felt only a few times in her sixteen years of life overwhelmed her as Fleur relentlessly clung to her best friend, her sorrow influencing both of them. Glimmers of memory flashed in Selene's mind, memories she'd rather forget. Memories of feeling detached, a feeling she had never quite understood.

"Thank you." Fleur said gratefully, moving away from her friend. "You have always made me feel better Selene. That is why you are my best friend."

She was luckier then she knew, surrounded by friends, one old, one current and one new. And now she was facing possibly losing two of them, something she had somehow overlooked for hours, and her walls began to crumble and her broken persona of old began to leak through the cracks.

Life had never been more bittersweet as the pair of quietly breaking girls walked down towards the lake, comforting each other by being there, but frozen inside knowing that there was too much to lose.

The morning air was bitterly cold and a howling wind whistled through the crowds of people; chilling Selene to the core. She shared an empathetic nod with Fleur, each reminding each other of their presence.

"Bubble Head Charm." Selene reminded in an undertone, keeping her voice down. She had a sneaking suspicion that both Hermione and Cho had figured out that she was helping Fleur, and she knew that Harry knew, but it wasn't strictly legal so the less people that knew the better.

Fleur nodded, and glanced towards the stands explicitly, saying what she needed to without saying it verbatim. Selene gave her friend a parting hug, echoing the terror in Fleur's eyes in her own. "I'll be there." She whispered, walking off towards the stands.

There didn't seem like any real point in sitting with the Gryffindors, seeing that her only definite friend there was in the Black Lake, but nevertheless she made her way towards the sea of red, hoping that someone would recognise and spot her.

"OI!" Someone answered her prayers and yelled. "SELENE! COME ON, WE DON'T HAVE ALL DAY!"

Despite her inner worries, a smile spread over Selene's face as she walked over to where George was madly wind-milling his arms around to get his attention. With a little jolt, she noticed Fred sitting next to his twin, along with a couple of girls from the Gryffindor Quidditch team, excluding Angelina she noted. They all looked presently surprised at Selene's appearance, but the lack of glares more than made up for it.

"You don't have to yell George – it isn't _that _loud." She said as she walked towards the group. "Hi Fred."

Mentally congratulating herself for not becoming a hopeless wreck at saying his name, Selene managed a careful little smile in his direction which was quickly returned. One of the girls stifled a laugh behind her hand, turning it into a cough.

"Sorry about my friend here." The other girl glared at the quietly giggling person beside her. "She's hopeless. I'm Alicia by the way, Alicia Spinnet."

The giggly girl swallowed her laughter and gave a mad little wave. "And I'm Katie Bell. Aren't you the Chaser on the Ravenclaw team? The one that got knocked out by your own Beater?"

"Yeah." Selene winced slightly at the painful memory. "I'm Selene Malfoy."

Alicia did a little double-take at this and looked around. "No way are you Malfoy's sister!" She gasped, prodding George hard.

"Ow…" George rubbed his arm gingerly. "Watch where you're putting your fingers woman! You could put someone's eye out!"

Katie sprang up and pulled Selene down in the space between her and Fred, moving up a couple of third years to accommodate the new arrival. Selene could feel the heat rising in her cheeks in being so close to Fred, but luckily neither Fred or Katie noticed this and Alicia began to excitedly rattle on about Quidditch.

"-the Kenmare Kestrels are doing well this season, of course!" Alicia noted, leaning over Fred so she could speak directly to Selene. "What team do you support?"

"The Holyhead Harpies." Selene said, while Fred mouthed the answer along with her. "Their Chasers are amazing!"

"I know!" Katie gushed, grabbing Selene's attention. "But I think Gwenog Jones could definitely choose their Seeker better, then they might not keep losing to the Kestrels!"

"Excuse me? The Kestrels have got six decent players, except for their Beater, he's a troll, and they could take the Harpies anytime!" Alicia interjected. "You two are going down the drain."

"We can't really contribute to this conversation." George spoke sadly.

Fred nodded his agreement. "As Selene delights in reminding me, if the Cannons win this season then I'll kiss a Flobberworm."

"Hey, where's Harry?" George asked, peering over the edge of the stands. "I can see Fleur, and Krum and Cedric, but where's Harry?"

"Relax George, he's there. You might need to get your eyes tested." Fred pointed to the spot next to Cedric, which was occupied by a small boy with messy black hair.

It wasn't really funny, but Selene giggled nervously anyway, earning a little smirk from George and a pleased smile from Fred. Katie and Alicia knowingly elbowed each other; both knowing that Fred was more-than-a-little obsessed with the Ravenclaw.

"3…2…1…GO!" Ludo Bagman yelled; and the four champions began the task. To Selene's relief, Fleur correctly managed to use the Bubble Head Charm that Selene had been coaching her in, and Cedric used the same tactic, to much delighted yelling from the Hufflepuffs. Krum used some type of Transfiguration that was incomplete, but still advanced and Harry just stood in the water, chewing something as the others dived in.

"You don't think…" Katie exclaimed in a high-pitched voice, but Selene put two and two together and came up with five.

"Gillyweed." She correctly ascertained as Harry clamped his hands over his neck and dove into the water. "I might not be very good at Herbology but I do read books."

With all the champions gone, the cheers lulled a bit but didn't stop. George turned to the three girls with mischief in his eyes. "Anyone fancy a bet?" He asked, as Katie and Alicia grimaced and groaned, obviously used to the twin's bets. "Come on, anyone?"

Selene shook her head hastily. "I've already got a bet with Draco that Harry will actually survive, and that's for twenty galleons."

The look George gave her could have sunk a million ships. "Twenty?" His jaw dropped open and Selene felt slightly uncomfortable.

"Um…" Selene didn't really know what to say. She had majorly slipped up in saying that, she knew the Weasley's were poor, in fact her father delighted in noting that fact at every dinnertime. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

"It's okay." George really didn't sound bothered. "I know you didn't mean it. Tell me then, how many did you two bet on the Quidditch World Cup?"

"Don't tell me, thirty?" Alicia slipped in.

"Fourty?" Katie added evilly. "Can't be more than fourty."

"Fifty-five." Selene winced at the incredulous looks they gave her, cringing under their gaze. "I won it. Because Ireland won."

"Well then, I will expect an awesome birthday present." George jumped in, diffusing the tension. "We all will."

The group murmured their assent, Fred giving Selene a curious look, like he was trying to read something he didn't understand. Selene blushed at his non-wavering gaze and took the opportunity to check the huge clock that had been fixed above the lake. "Sure." She agreed, not really paying attention.

Fifteen minutes had passed. No one seemed concerned but a niggling feeling began to emerge in Selene's stomach. Something was wrong, surely Bagman would have regular updates on how the champions were doing, not just silence. One hour was actually a decent amount of time to work with, if you didn't get distracted.

George suddenly yawned and stood up from his seat, "accidently" pushing Fred into Selene as he stretched out his arms. "I don't know about you but I'm bored." He explained as they quickly moved away from each other. "What about you my dear brother?"

"Fine…" Fred said, gritting his teeth and glaring at his twin. "Completely fine."

"Lovely day…" George added absent-mindedly, winking at Katie and Alicia as they giggled at Fred's discomfort and annoyance. "What do you think Selene?"

Jumping slightly at being addressed directly, Selene nodded, albeit slowly. "I guess, but it's a bit cold, isn't it?"

"You can have my scarf!" Fred blurted, and Katie succumbed into laughter. George smiled knowingly and Alicia rolled her eyes and resisted the urge to forcefully push Fred onto Selene. "Uh, here you, um… go."

"Thanks." Selene smiled at Fred, her mind a mess of white marshmallows (blame her brother for that) and Chocolate Frogs.

Alicia face-palmed and shared a knowing look with George. Katie had stopped laughing, and was now about to explode with the fact that they liked each other. To stop herself from yelling this out, she instead bit her tongue sharply and started a conversation about sweets with Alicia.

As the other three were avidly discussing about whether Chocolate Frogs held out over Every Flavour Beans, Fred and Selene sat there in a very awkward silence. Every time Fred would go to say something, he'd think better of it and go back to staring at the Gryffindor scarf that was now around Selene's neck, and whenever Selene was about to admit that she was puzzled and nervous, she would become very interested with her shoes. It was a no-win situation, as neither of them were willing to start up a conversation again.

Finally, Alicia became bored with the current state of affairs and leapt up again, missing Fred and Selene but immediately turning to face them. Bluntness mode activated.

"Oh, come on! Say something!" She pressed Fred, waving her fingers in front of his nose. "Anything? Oh, come one, you haven't gone mute on us have you?"

"Piss off." Fred muttered, again becoming obsessed with the Gryffindor scarf.

"IT TALKS!" She yelled, attracting the attention of everyone around them. "Oh, sorry guys, it's a bit awkward and stuff over here, best go back to being bored."

Shrugging and turning away, the attentions of the fellow supporters waned and soon enough Alicia was left with two awkward people and two silently laughing individuals. "Fred are you a vampire? Because you keep staring at Selene's neck. Should I tell Lily? Then you can bite her and all of her wishes will be fulfilled."

"NO!" Fred and Selene exclaimed at the same time, before blushing and turning away, this time Fred distinctly looking anywhere but at the scarf. He could feel his ears turning red like whenever he was under pressure, damn family trait.

Alicia stood there, looking between Fred and Selene for quite some time, before giving up and sitting back down beside George again. "Do they realise?" She said in a stage-whisper to Katie.

"I don't think so." Katie replied, a glimmer of mischief in her eyes. "George, has Fred admitted it yet?"

"Not to Selene." George completed in a loud whisper, grinning at Fred and Selene quickly. "Hello! Are you two talking to each other yet?"

Both shook their heads, trying to work out what the three people beside them were talking about. They seemed to have gone back to square one again, back to the Yule Ball.

Remembering how he got her to talk before, Fred looked around for inspiration and quickly found a viable idea. "What do you think of Bagman?" He asked unexpectedly.

"He's, urm, okay I guess. I don't really know him. From what Fleur says he's a bit of a maniac and not very tactful." Selene answered, grateful for the distraction.

Fred laughed at Fleur's rather accurate description. "He is. Dad really likes him though, Bagman's the one who got us the tickets for the Quidditch World Cup. My brother Percy, you know the one who's filling in for Crouch? He absolutely hates him, probably because he was striding around in his Wimbourne Wasps robes all the time." He added darkly, glaring in the general direction of the Triwizard judge. "Idiot."

Taken aback by the last comment, Selene didn't further the topic, instead focusing on Madame Maxime. "Is it true that Madame Maxime's horses almost killed a Slytherin first year?" She asked curiously.

"Load of dung, I know for a fact that Malfoy spread that rumour to make himself look good." Fred locked his jaw before remembering who he was talking too. "Oh, sorry. I forgot you were his sister."

"It's okay." Selene dismissed. "Lots of people do. Quite flattering actually, as much as I love my little brother he is kind of a git to people he doesn't like."

"Kind of?" Fred queried, turning to look at the girl. "Understatement of the century."

To is surprise, Selene giggled at this. "I know what you mean. He isn't normally that bad, it's just lately…" She shrugged. "He gets a bit lonely."

Before Fred could ask exactly why Draco Malfoy gets lonely, a kerfuffle broke out from the edge of the lake and he, Selene, Alicia, George and Katie strained their eyes to see who it was.

"And Miss Delacour has returned, without her hostage!" Ludo Bagman yelled over the uproar of the crowd and Selene tensed, her earlier terror breaking through the barrier she had made. "Goodness gracious, will she be alright?"

"I need to go down there." Selene stood up and began to push her way through the crowds.

Fred and George had a mental conversation, which ended in Fred hastily making to follow the Ravenclaw and George trying to explain to Alicia and Katie what was happening.

When she reached the foot of the stairs that led up to the stands, Selene broke out into a panicked run towards Fleur, who was being comforted by Madame Maxime. "Fleur! _Quel est le problem?"_

Madame Maxime looked up from the teary girl in her arms and looked pleadingly at Selene. "Selene, she was attacked by ze Grindeelows! Zose veecious creetures!"

"If I may, Madame Maxime." Professor Dumbledore had appeared in the minutes that Selene had been standing there. "As you may well know Miss Malfoy, once a champion has returned from the lake there is not going back. However-"He looked Selene dead in the eyes. "-As part of the safety regulations that have been instated, if a champion can find someone willing to complete the task for them if another life is in danger, then that someone would be allowed to continue on in the place of the champion. Miss Delacour's sister-" Fleur sobbed ever more loudly at this. "-Is her hostage, and I understand-"

Selene didn't hear the rest of his sentence and nodded robotically, remembering the beautiful smile and silvery-blonde hair of Fleur's younger sister, her sweet laugh and the adoring way she would follow both Fleur and Selene around whenever Selene was over at the Delacour's during the holidays. It was obvious why Gabrielle was Fleur's hostage: Fleur adored her younger sister and spoilt her rotten. If Fleur couldn't save her, then someone had to. No one else would, no one else cared enough about the sobbing girl to even think about it. It was her, or no one.

"I'll go." She heard herself saying. "I might not be brave, but Gabrielle can't be left down there."

"Zank you…" Fleur sobbed, throwing her arms around Selene. "You are my best friend, and I owe you so much. Zank you!"

"Miss Malfoy, the clock is ticking." Professor Dumbledore reminded. "You have thirty minutes."

Taking deep breaths, Selene was led behind the medical tent by Fleur, who was quite adept at clothes transfiguration. Fleur quickly transfigured her clothes into a purple one-piece swimsuit, hugging her friend again. Selene unwound the scarf from around her neck, handing it to her friend with shaky hands.

As she walked out again, Selene's heart began to pound so loudly she could swear everyone could hear it. She couldn't think properly, the screaming crowd took over everything she could focus one. Why was she doing this? This was the kind of thing Gryffindors did, not quiet studious Ravenclaws. But then the thought of Gabrielle, right at the bottom of the lake, her hair swimming in the water overtook her and she looked back once at Fleur.

Fleur wasn't the person her eyes landed on however. Fred Weasley was shocked, if such an expression could ever be labelled as such. For a split second Selene wanted to take the time to explain to him – if anyone was important enough it was him – but there wasn't time. One glance at the clock said that. Love knows no boundaries, except when another's life is on the brink.

"AND AS THE NEW RULES DICTATE, IF ANOTHER'S LIFE IS IN DANGER AND THE CHAMPION IS UNABLE TO COMPLETE THE TASK, THEN ANOTHER MAY STEP IN TO SAVE THE HOSTAGE! MISS MALFOY HAS TWENTY-FIVE MINUTES TO RETURN WITH MISSDELACOUR'S HOSTAGE!"

Casting the Bubble Head Charm over her, Selene turned back to face the lake, repeating the task over and over in her mind. Find Gabrielle, save her. Find Gabrielle, save her.

And before you could say "What the hell are you doing?" Selene was swimming into the lake, pushed her way through seaweed and wondering why she wasn't a Hufflepuff. Why was she even a Ravenclaw if she couldn't stay away from helping her friends in any way she could?

And then she realised that is your friends were in danger or in trouble, then she would do anything.

There were no Grindylows so far, for which Selene was devoutly grateful. It was all she could do to whisper "_Lumos_." And even the slight light that could be seen from the tip of her wand was no use against the overwhelming blackness.

Supposing that Harry, Krum and Cedric must be further on, Selene continued to battle her way through the pond life, using spells where the knots were especially thick. Eventually the weed dispersed, leaving the way clear forward and she began to swim into the blackness, vaguely aware of the strange sensation that came with using a Bubble Head Charm on yourself.

After what seemed like years, but what must have only been about twenty minutes, she spotted a dark green glowing light from the bottom of the lake. Mermaids.

"_Come seek us where our voices sound, we cannot sing above the ground._" They sang, eerily surrounding Selene as she tried to spot something other than the merfolk from the light emitting from her wand.

"Oh, shut up." She muttered, spotting a couple of humanoid figures and swimming towards them.

Harry Potter looked up as she approached; shock evident on his face, tinged green by the ghostly light of the merpeople. Viktor Krum, still half shark was attempting to cut Hermione free from ropes that bound her to a metal fence. Harry was holding on to a comatose Ron, and there was a gap between Hermione and Gabrielle that must have been Cho. At least she was safe, Cedric would never let anything happen to her anyway.

Gabrielle was comatose too, and her blonde hair was swaying slightly in the water like she had imagined. Gesturing to Gabrielle, Harry made a "You?" face at Selene, nodding at Krum as he swam by with Hermione.

Selene confirmed this, mouthing "I'll tell you when we get out of here." At the fourth year, who threw the piece of flint to her as a reply and watched as Selene sawed at the ropes for a bit, not really getting anywhere. Giving up, Selene pointed her wand at the ropes and thought "_Diffindo!_"

The ropes fell away, leaving Gabrielle to float free and Selene grabbed her protectively, nodding to Harry. They began to swim up towards the distant twinkling surface, Selene again destroying rocks and weeds that appeared in their path. Her legs began to ache but Selene hardly noticed; her full attention on Gabrielle and Harry. About six metres from the surface, Harry began to cough and splutter.

Noticing that the Gillyweed was wearing off, Selene grabbed Harry's hand and towed him above the water, hearing a muffled splashing sound that confirmed his reappearance. Ron had woken up too it seemed, and when Selene had managed to haul herself above the water along with Gabrielle, the last part of her energy left her.

"SELENE!" She could faintly hear Fleur yelling. "OH YOU SAVED HER, YOU SAVED MY LEETLE SEESTER! 'OW CAN I EVER REPAY YOU?"

"Why's she here?" A very disgruntled Ron asked, and a flash of red hair appeared on her Fleur dominated vision.

"Let her breath, let her breath." Madam Pomfrey bustled into view. "She's exhausted, pulling you three up like that. A miracle she made it, really."

Someone helped her up, and Selene brushed a soaking-wet tendril of hair out of her face to see the panic-stricken faces of Hermione and Cho running towards her.

"Selene!" Hermione reached her first and threw her arms around the older girl, ignoring her drenched state. "Oh my gosh, are you aright? Professor Dumbledore said you'd gone to get Fleur's hostage and-"

Hermione was forced to leave off here as Cho launched herself at Selene, crying helplessly. "I… thought… you… were… dead…" She choked, squeezing her ever-more tightly. "DON'T EVER DO THAT AGAIN!"

Eventually Madam Pomfrey managed to chivvy on the crowd, hustling Selene, Gabrielle, Cho, Hermione, Harry and Ron back into the medical tent where Krum and Cedric already were.

"Drink this dear." Madam Pomfrey passed a glass of what looked like Ribena to Selene, and as she drank she could tell steam had come out of her ears, even if the same affect hadn't expanded to the rest of them too after they'd drank the Pepper-Up Potion.

Once Gabrielle had been given a once-over and pronounced fit, she bounded up and ran into Selene's arms, jabbering in excited French about how pleased she was to see her again and how grown-up she was and how there was a guy with red-hair waiting for her outside the tent.

"Wait, you said red-hair?" Selene looked down at the eight-year-old quizzically. Gabrielle just nodded and buried her head in Selene's shoulder, leaving her to wonder why Fred would want to talk to her, asides from the whole "jumping in the lake" idea.

Gabrielle disappeared a bit later, skipping off to find Madame Maxime, and Selene wrapped the cloak Madame Pomfrey had given her around her shoulders and stepped out into the glaring winter sunlight, shielding her eyes from the sun. It was quieter, and most of the students were back up in the school.

"Hi." Fred was just outside the tent-flap, with George, Alicia and Katie not too far off in the distance. "That was amazing, by the way."

"Thanks." Selene flushed the colour of her swimsuit, managing a smile. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

Fred didn't say anything at first, but then he passed Selene his scarf, wrapping it around her neck and leaving his fingers to linger a little longer on her bare skin. "Keep it." He managed to say, after his heart assumed a more regular pattern. "And I didn't want to talk to you. I was trying to do this, all the goddamn time you were sitting next to me in the stands. Then you just went and dived into the bloody lake, and I thought you were a goner. And now you're alive and I just wanted to-"

He didn't finish his sentence, but he didn't need to. Because as he leaned forward and lightly brushed his lips with hers, that was all that didn't need to be verbalised. It was short and soft, but to Selene it lasted for years. He tasted faintly of vanilla, and the gentle way he touched her shoulder to steady her made her logically thinking mind melt like ice cream.

She was as red as a strawberry when he stopped, just standing there trying to work out her feelings. Selene was faintly aware of George whooping and wolf-whistling a few metres away, but she didn't turn to face him. Instead she found herself unable to move from her position.

And for the first time, when she looked into his eyes, she didn't see that man who died in front of her, she saw Fred Weasley, properly. She could count every freckle on his face, could see every single eyelash as they stood there, saying nothing.

That was the day that Fred Weasley unconditionally fell in love with Selene Malfoy.

**Don't kill me! Don't kill me!**

**I had to do that. It doesn't make sense that they wouldn't have a back-up plan if someone else's life was in danger, and then the idea sprang into my head along with all that adorableness at the end. I needed to ship Frelene as soon as possible, so the plot would work.**

**So, review and let me know what you thought! This chapter is 5,114 words long, if you can believe it! I hope you didn't think I rushed the task, but the main plot point is the kiss and all the awkward stuff before. **

**Tell me when you want them to start dating, it can be whenever from here really!**

**Gosh, I feel a bit like a big white fluffy marshmallow now! (THAT will come back up later…)**

**See ya – READ AND REVIEW!**

**Eleanor xxx**

**P.S. Do I suck at this romantic stuff? Let me know, I need some help for that. **


	23. Chapter 22: Of Kissing And Scarves

**I'm just going to say thank you to all my reviewers, named or not named. Kacey, TheJesusFreak111, BellatrixD… I love you guys. Your reviews are amazing.**

**I need to get this up before I spontaneously combust.**

**I don't own Harry Potter.**

Chapter 22: Of Kissing and Scarves

His every waking moment was basically filled with the memory of that kiss.

For once, he'd let himself go and now Fred wasn't sure whether he did the right thing. But she'd looked so pretty, with that overlarge cloak wrapped around her shoulders and the damp tendrils of hair gracefully pushed back off her face. And her face when he wrapped that scarf around her neck, the way her bare skin had felt beneath his fingers…

And now she wouldn't even look at him. That could be interpreted as either annoyance or shyness, and judging by the goddamn awful way he'd treated her before he could bet his bloody broomstick that she hated him.

Why, why, why did he have to be so bloody idiotic? Kissing her like that, so unawares. He at least owed her an apology, even if she hated him now.

Godric, he hoped she didn't hate him. He could have dealt with it if it was purely physical attraction, he'd had lots of experience with that anyway, but now he actually was _in _love with her, it was doubly difficult. Every time he saw her, even if it was just a fleeting glimpse, he wanted to kiss her again. Or at least touch her, just a little brush. Talk to her, hopefully without them having another crazily awkward silence.

Had they even talked properly? Yes, they had, but that was before he realised that he fancied her. George's theory that she liked him too was probably defunct, if her shock and quick escape after he kissed her was any indication.

Quidditch. The Holyhead Harpies vs The Chudley Cannons; that was all he remembered of that conversation. Oh, and her refusal to admit that the Cannons kicked arse.

A smile twitched at the corners of his mouth as he bit into a piece of toast thoughtfully. Normally if he even caught himself thinking about anything resembling romantic feelings he would grab George and his broom and challenge his twin to see who could stay on their broom the longest while they tried to knock each other off. But now, without that to take his mind off it, he was spending all of his free time thinking about Selene Malfoy.

When he looked up from the Gryffindor table and the spiel Hermione was giving that he was only half-listening to, Fred purposefully glanced at the Ravenclaws, who all seemed to be gathered around Selene since her recent excursion into the lake. In fact, it wasn't just the Ravenclaws. Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors all seemed to extend to her new fan club, but Slytherins just seemed to act the same around her; quietly wondering who the heck she was.

Grinning at the thought, Fred turned back to his fellow Gryffindors and the faces of a very bored Harry and Ron. In fact, Ron had fallen asleep in his bacon. Lily, who was stationed beside Hermione, kept reaching across to steal George's sausages, who was electing to ignore her for fear of being killed by flying fork.

"Are any of you even listening?" Hermione finally asked, exasperated. "Any of you?"

Everyone shook their heads, too bored and preoccupied to speak. Hermione rolled her eyes, before turning to Fred. "Have you spoken to Selene yet?" She asked suddenly, and miraculously everyone woke up, even Ron.

"No…" In fact Fred's thoughts had been eerily similar to this statement. "Why…?"

"Well, you kissed her, didn't you?" Hermione pointed out casually.

Ron sat up straight, an expression of complete and utter confusion on his face. "What, you kissed Selene? I thought you hated her, didn't he Harry? I distinctly remember you hated her."

Looking around as if an answer might present itself somehow, Fred risked a glance towards the Ravenclaw table. "Um, no I don't hate her. At all." He reiterated. "Ever. She's, um, nice?"

George snorted. "Nice? You wouldn't have said that when you were busy snogging her."

"But have you talked to her yet?" Hermione raised her voice so she could be heard over the arguing. "Hmmm?"

"No, I haven't okay?" Fred snapped, tearing his mind to the issue at hand. "She obviously hates me, or she wouldn't have scarpered like that."

If it was possible, Hermione became even more pushy and annoying. Ron really could pick 'em. "Oh, that's a shame." She began. "Because she really likes you, you know. She told me. Selene's a little shy, that's why she ran away. But she likes you; you'd better go and talk to her."

A little bit of something lit up in Fred, but he kept it to himself. "Not right now." He insisted. "Anyway, she's busy with all of her friends and stuff. I'll talk to her later."

"Is little Freddie too scared to talk to a girl?" George teased, poking Fred with his fork. "Is he too scared to talk to a girl he likes? Oooh, beware the great Frederick Weasley, master prankster but too scared to talk to a girl! I'm so scared!"

"You're not going to let this go are you?" Fred shook his head and tried to ignore his twin's teasing, but lifted his gaze again to the Ravenclaw table, pondering whether Selene actually liked him.

"Should I broadcast this fact?" Lily grinned evilly, putting down her cutlery and standing up. "Standing on the table?"

His face falling, Fred shot her his "evil death glare". "You bloody well wouldn't." He glared, feeling heat rise in his face. "You wouldn't bloody dare."

"Yes I would, unless you go over there right now and talk to my cousin." She threatened.

"That's not bloody fair!" Fred tried to stare Lily down, but she was having none of it. "No bloody way."

"That's blackmail." She answered in a sing-song voice, sitting back down again. "Go on then Freddie-boy, go and talk to my favourite cousin. She will really appreciate it, won't she Hermione?"

"Not that I condone blackmail." Hermione muttered, but she nodded begrudgingly. "If he doesn't go, I'd stand on the table Lily. George, what do you think?"

Before George could voice his opinion, Fred stood up, casting another less-then-polite glance at Liliana Tonks and another one at Hermione, gave George the finger and walked over to the Ravenclaw table, wondering what in the name of Godric Gryffindor he was doing.

Selene's P.O.V.

She loved him. She knew that as soon as their lips touched, but she had been stupid and ran off before she could react in a way that Rowena Ravenclaw would have been proud of. Not just ran.

The new, red scarf that inexplicably she folded up neatly and placed in one of her bigger books, that was just something she didn't want to think about. She didn't want to think about the way his gentle touch had left fire on her skin and she didn't want to think about how the barest rush that their lips had made forced some kind of twisted desire into her mind. And now Selene couldn't look at him and it was all so stupid.

Why couldn't love just be simple? Be as simple as flying a broomstick, as choosing between two books at five in the morning. Not this complicated, full with people obsessed that she liked George, not pausing to believe that she might love his twin brother.

Selene was in at the deep end, she knew that. She had jumped in head first when Fred kissed her, and now she couldn't look at him. And she was forced to confront the fact that she unconditionally loved the son of two people her parents hated. What would Draco say? His sister was in love with a Blood Traitor, a Weasley no less. Just another reason why she couldn't feel this way.

And now everyone was flocking around her like bees to honey, all because she'd helped out a friend when no one else would. She wasn't brave; she decided a goal and stuck at it until she struck gold. That counted for swimming to get eight year-olds too.

There was a reason she was in Ravenclaw, after all. Too cowardly to be in Gryffindor, too accepting to be in Slytherin, too headstrong to be in Hufflepuff. Ravenclaw's traits included acceptance, and it seemed it was also the only house that would have her.

She wasn't deserving of all this attention, it was simply something hard to complete that she'd broken down into bite-sized pieces so she wouldn't get freaked out. Also, the way the Gryffindors now clapped at her whenever she passed them in the hall and the warm smiles of the Hufflepuffs were alien. Before this year, she was the quiet, studious Ravenclaw prefect that somehow was on the Quidditch team. Somehow. Selene was the girl you'd find reading a book over lunch, whether it be Muggle or magical.

Now… now she was stared at wherever she went, had two completely new friends that she hardly knew existed until the Second Task, had hoards of unwanted attention from boys as well as admiring girls – in fact there was one Gryffindor fifth year that seemed to follow her constantly – and was no longer a chameleon.

"So, how did you do it?" Marietta gasped, leaning forward on her elbows. "How did you save this Gabriella girl?"

"Her name is Gabrielle." Selene corrected, rubbing her forehead wearily. "And I told you, I just did what the others did, swam down to the bottom of the bloody lake and freed her. Nothing to it."

No one took the hint and backed off however, and everyone was suddenly excitedly asking Selene what the merpeople were like, whether she saw the Giant Squid, if Grindylows almost got her like they got Fleur. Ignoring all of them, Selene looked over towards the Slytherin table, where everyone looked considerably less enthusiastic about her tale. In fact, Flint was going as far to shoot her dirty looks every other second, like her survival was a personal insult to him.

Draco looked up from Crabbe and Goyle (she should really call them Vincent and Gregory but Selene thought their last names suited them better) and met his sister's gaze, nodding almost unperceptively. The he stood up and walked out of the Great Hall, not really attracting any attention but a few curious people turned his way. Selene left it a couple of minutes before excusing herself and following him down to the Dungeon corridor.

Sitting down on the floor, next to him, Selene could feel the anger coming off him in waves.

"What aren't you telling me?" He asked, not turning to face her. "Everyone's flocking around you, all swapping stories around the campfire like Hufflepuffs. You acted like a bloody Gryffindor! What the hell were you thinking?"

"I'm not brave enough to be a Gryffindor. There is a reason I'm in Ravenclaw. That was just a one-off time, who else was going to help Fleur?" Selene blew a piece of hair out of her face and glanced up at the light. "Come on. It's only a one-off."

Draco looked at his older sister. "What are you keeping from me?"

Burying her head in her hands, Selene held a little debate with herself. She should tell him, really. They never held secrets from each other, not even when she became friends with a muggle-born, not when she became a Ravenclaw, not even when she and Fred were at each other's throats.

"He kissed me."

Draco looked at Selene like she was insane. "Zabini?"

"No, you pink marshmallow." Selene couldn't resist it; she cracked a little smile. These marshmallow nicknames were strange. "Fred Weasley. He kissed me."

There was silence. It echoed in the empty corridor. Selene swallowed, dropping her gaze and trying to work out what Draco's expression meant. His blue eyes were cold and unfeeling, so close to her father's. His mouth was unreadable, a very thin line. His Slytherin green robes seemed almost black in the dim light to her.

"You said you'd sort this out!" Draco exclaimed suddenly. "You said it was just a phase and that you'd be normal again before I could say marshmallow!"

"But the pact…" Selene bit her lip. "We always said, if you didn't tell Mother and Father about my friendships, then I wouldn't tell them about your detentions and what you get them for. Ever since I joined Hogwarts. And this includes it Draco, I don't feel anything for him!" She lied, fiddling with her fingers. "He's just someone I shouldn't have led astray. I don't love him."

Those last four words felt like a curse, but Draco at least seemed pacified, even if his stony exterior didn't change. "You are a terrible liar." He eventually compromised with, looking away from her.

He stood up and glanced up to the ceiling like it might hold the answer to all of his problems. It wasn't an awkward silence, it was uncomfortable. If either of them spoke then everything would come into focus, which is exactly what Selene didn't want to happen.

"Yes, okay, I love him." She found herself snapping at him. "I love him. I LOVE HIM! Okay, I love a Weasley, does it really matter that much? Look at Aunty Bella and Uncle Rody, both big, posh, rich pure-bloods, and they've never exactly been the most perfect couple. But then again," Selene thought wildly. "Aunty Dromeda, why do you think we've never met her, why I never knew I had cousins until this year? She married someone our grandparents didn't like."

"Yes, AND YOU'LL GO THE SAME WAY!" Draco yelled. "Father won't hesitate Selene; you've made too many mistakes already. One more any you'll be out of our family before you can say marshmallows."

Selene stood up and gripped his shoulders, spinning him to face her. "But they're happy Draco. They have a proper family, not just one based on mutual understanding. Now I don't know the first thing about love, or even… straightening my bloody hair! But I'm clever, and I'm in Ravenclaw for a reason. What I know is what I know, and it's kept me going this far. Yes, so I've fallen for a red-headed absolute git, but at least he understands me. You know me so well, better than everyone else here, our strange marshmallow nicknames and our mad inside jokes, and you know better than anyone what I want the most."

The words hung in the air like fog, but Draco didn't move to turn away. He and his sister were around the same height, so he didn't have to look down or up to directly meet her eyes. He gritted his teeth. "I can't lose you. The pact is off."

"So you'll tell them-"

"Everything." Draco supplied, looking guilty but determined. "Cho Chang, Marietta Edgecombe, your grades in Potions, Fleur Delacour, the Mudblood Gryffindor, the Weasels, those… those annoying twins, Fred Weasley, Harry Potter, being in touch with Lily Tonks, every little tiny insignificant detail that you overlooked. Maybe they can save you from whatever you'd do next."

She watched him walk away, and the full weight of what he'd just told her fell on her stomach. This was it. There was no turning back. She might as well go and chuck her viola out of Ravenclaw tower. Because she could tell something was going to change this year, but to begin with Selene'd dismissed it as a premonition of a new haircut or Cho finally getting somewhere with Cedric. Not something as big as this.

Fred's P.O.V.

With badly disguised relief, Fred walked back to the Gryffindor table, thanking the god of pranking and all things firework-related that she had left before she had noticed him.

Lily's face looked impressively calculating, all things considered, so Fred quickly took a different turn, walking out into the Entrance Hall for no reason other than he wanted to get away from that girl before she broke his ego beyond repair. Egos were hard to build and expensive to replace, at least in is case. Fred's had taken many years of pranking and flirting to create and manipulate, and it was a thing of beauty. Unfortunately, Lily could destroy it with a flex of her pinkie.

"AND YOU'LL GO THE SAME WAY!" Someone yelled from the Dungeons, and Fred looked around in surprise. That was slightly mad, why would anyone ever be outside of a room full of food? Food was the second most important thing in life, after pranking. Except Selene, but who knows what went through that girl's head sometimes? Not that he cared really, but it would be nice if she was thinking about him…

Fred smirked. He was glad George couldn't read his mind; his ego would be in pieces on the floor if he could. Again, George was pretty informed himself, sneaking around spying on people when they are trying to hold a serious "conversation".

There were a series of loud bangs from the Dungeons and Fred frowned. Was someone planning a prank without him? This wasn't right at all. He was the King, no, the GOD of pranking. Co-God maybe. But still, no one could prank without his help, they'd fail epically. Only the Weasley twins could provide help of any pranking kind.

So, with that ego-enlarging thought in his mind, he walked importantly down the stairs that led to the Dungeons.

"Selene?" His eyes widened as he saw the girl on the floor. "I didn't know you were in Slytherin?" He joked lamely.

She looked up at him with red-rimmed eyes, choking on a sob. He'd never seen her so… hopeless. And he did something he'd never considered himself capable of doing before.

"Are you okay?" He crouched down next to her, silently willing her not to burst into tears at the sight of him. "Not…"

"He knows…" She gasped, brushing a few tears off her face. "Draco... he…" Selene gasped again and was unable to continue her sentence. Fred slipped a consoling arm around her shoulders, feeling her relax into him and let the tears come.

"I'm going to take you to Professor Flitwick, okay?" He said slowly, bringing her to a standing position. "You're going to need to walk though; I think people would get the wrong idea if I carried you."

She didn't laugh, which was unusual, she laughed at all of his jokes, just about. For once she wasn't laughing or smiling or giggling, not even hexing him. It made him feel slightly uncomfortable, for the whole time he'd known her she'd never cried in front of any of her friends. And here he was, with a few months of knowing her and a single kiss behind him and she implicitly trusted him more than she even trusted Fleur and Cho. Truly, he should feel a little wary or even nervous, but Fred could only feel slightly uncomfortable.

They didn't pass anyone on the walk up to the fourth floor, mainly because Fred slipped through a passageway located behind a picture of the four founders in an effort to speed their journey up. He'd only done anything of this kind with George, guiding Ginny through the stares that seemed to follow her even a whole summer after the Chamber of Secrets incident.

But now he was completely alone, except for the girl hanging off his shoulder.

"Selene?" He asked quietly, feeling her nod wordlessly. "What happened?"

She took a deep breath and sniffed slightly. "I'm sorry." She choked out.

"It's okay, we're friends, right?" Great, now he just friend-zoned the girl he was in love with. "Um… yeah."

There was a slightly awkward silence and Fred fought the urge to face-palm. This pseudo-relationship was going to be the death of him. One minute he was being blackmailed by Lily into going to talk to her and then getting out of it, the next he was comforting her in the middle of an empty secret passageway. He knew next to nothing about her, but seeing her like this made him feel like he knew all there was to know.

He knew she was a Chaser, and a fairly good one at that. He knew she couldn't dance to save her life. He knew her favourite colour was light blue, that she read books avidly and that her Quidditch team was the Holyhead Harpies. Her best friends were Fleur, Cho Hermione and George. And that was all.

What he didn't know was exactly what he wanted to know. How could she see Thestrals, for one thing? And why was she crying all alone in the middle of a corridor?

"He knows." Selene repeated, finally getting a hold on herself. "I've always been crap at lying. I tell him one thing and he knows it's the other."

"Who knows?" Asked Fred, keeping a gentle grip on her lower arm. "Who knows Selene?"

"My brother." She averted her gaze, biting her lip. "My brother knows. He knows that I… I… that I…"

Her stuttering and red face went unnoticed by Fred, who was focusing on only her words. "That you…?" He prompted, suddenly becoming aware of the heat rising in his own face. Why was he even blushing? Did he have an evil twin (not George, oh Godric, evil triplet) that blushed for him?

"That I, uh…" Selene couldn't bring herself to look anywhere near him. Fred, for his part, was too busy trying to work out if he and George could have a evil triplet to notice.

"That I love you."

She whispered those words, so they were almost inaudible. Almost. Because those four words started something inside of Fred, prodding him until he became entirely focused on the girl next to him in that deserted passageway.

"You what?" He breathed, hardly daring to believe that Hermione might be right about something other than schoolwork.

"That I love you." Selene buried her head in her hands, whispering again and wishing she could be anywhere but here, right now, admitting her feelings to someone she barely knew.

The repeating of those four words made it impossible for Fred to push on, actually remember what he was supposed to be doing. Slowly, but deliberately, he moved one hand away from her face, then the other. "You love me?" He asked quietly, tilting her chin so he was looking directly into her eyes. "You, Selene whatever Malfoy, daughter of two of society's biggest pricks and sister to the world's biggest arsehole, love me?"

She bit her lip again, as is she was about to say something else, but Selene nodded her head once, up and down, before closing her eyes. Before he could change his mind, Fred nodded too.

"I love you too." He said, but in a normal voice. Selene's eyes snapped open, and her lips parted in a gesture of shock. She seemed lost for words. "Yes, I love you. Shout it to the heavens, why don't you? I, Fred Weasley, the most enigmatic, amazing person in the history of amazing people have fallen in love with someone, a prefect and a geek as well. Get over it."

When he kissed her this time, there was nothing gentle or innocent about it, it was hungry and passionate, simply a way to hang onto her for as long as Fred could. A way to tell her everything without sounding like an idiot. And she understood them, because Selene relaxed almost instantly, instinctively placing one hand on his shoulder as Fred let the hand that was holding her chin up drop.

"YAY! AT BLOODY LAST!" George yelled, jumping out from behind a tapestry, one of the few that decorated this passage. "LEE! I TOLD YOU! I TOLD YOU! THREE GALLEONS TO ME!"

Fred looked like he was about to murder his twin brother. "George, what do you think you're doing?"

Shrugging, George cracked a manic grin. "Spying on you my dear brother. It is quite fun, you know. We all agree."

Selene looked like she wanted the ground to open and swallow her up. "How many of them are there?" She asked warily, glancing at George.

In answer to this, Lee, Angelina, Alicia, Katie, Hermione, Ron, Harry and even Ginny stepped out. Ginny grinned, bouncing on the balls of her feet before thrusting her hand out in greeting. Living with six brothers had made her very forward. "Ginny Weasley. I apologise for my brother's behaviour, he-" Here she shot a glare at George. "-has never been tactful. I hope for the sake of his future wife that he doesn't act like this when I get a boyfriend."

George gulped. Ginny smiled sweetly at him before tuning back to Selene. "Anyway, it's been lovely to meet you. Even if I met you just after you've snogged dearest Freddie senseless."

"OI!" Fred exclaimed, as Selene possibly went even redder. "You're my little sister; you're not supposed to make comments like that!"

Shaking her head sadly, Ginny reached over and patted him on the shoulder. "That's what they all say Freddie dearest, that's what they always say."

Lee looked between Fred and Selene for a couple of seconds, before grudgingly reaching into his pocket and passing George three galleons. "I now hold a personal vendetta against you." He brandished a quill pen, which happened to be the only thing he could find, in Selene's direction with a smile on his face. "Lee Jordan. I'm afraid I can never look at you prefects the same way again, now I know what you do in your free time."

He gave Selene a roguish wink. "We don't, I mean we don't-"Selene protested, looking around for a way to get out of there.

"Sure you don't." Alicia raised her eyebrows. "Ignore her Lee; everyone knows those two can't keep their hands off each other."

Fred grinned, running a hand through his hair, while Selene attempted to blend into the shadows. Katie giggled at their different reactions, earning her a sharp glance from George. Angelina just rolled her eyes and pulled Selene out of the wall with a sharp yank. "I must warn you, he doesn't seem to understand how normal human beings think and work." She warned, but sounding kind all the same. "Just be grateful Wood left last year Fred, he'd think Selene was only out to get the Quidditch secrets."

"Wood?" Selene found her voice again. Everyone stared at her in utter amazement. She didn't know who Oliver Wood was. "You mean Oliver Wood?"

"Blimey Fred, I admire your style and everything but she doesn't know who Oliver Wood is!" Ron gaped, blinking. "Selene, have you been living under a rock for the last three years?"

"She's in Ravenclaw, I doubt all Ravenclaws know who Oliver Wood is." Hermione pointed out, with a pointed glance at Selene. "And she does know he is, she's just trying to change the conversation topic."

"For the love of the Holy Hippogriffs Hermione." Selene said under her breath. "Guys, I have Arithmancy next, can you let me get to class?"

"OH! We have Defence Against the Dark Arts." Hermione spoke for a still incredulous Ron (he was still stick at "You mean Oliver Wood") and a freaked out Harry (who seemed unable to rid the image of a sensible Ravenclaw prefect and one of the pranking duo snogging in the middle of a passageway). "We'd better go."

**Let's leave it there.**

**READ AND REVIEW! Tell me what you think about Frelene. And yes, they are sort of dating now.**

**Eleanor xxx**

**P.S. Sorry my notes are so short!**


	24. Chapter 23: The Dog

**My reviewer: Kacey, Draco plays a significant role in the next few chapters, and his problems with Selene being different to their family are his main problems. Anyway, she'd been there for him more than their parents ever have been, I think he had a right to feel protective even if he's overreacting. **

**I don't own Harry Potter, sorry!**

Chapter 23: The Dog

_You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be. _– Iris by Goo Goo Dolls

"Ah, Miss Malfoy." Professor Flitwick squeaked, holding open the door to his office. "Do come in, yes, come in my dear."

"Thank you Professor." Selene seated herself on one of the chairs situated opposite Flitwick's desk, glancing out the window to see the bright blue sky. Just another reason she loved that colour.

Perching himself atop the many cushions, Professor Flitwick shuffled the pieces of paper around on his desk and proceeded to search for something amidst the clutter. "Ah, here we go!" He exclaimed, producing a piece of parchment from the mess. "Gave me quite a shock this did Miss Malfoy, yes it did."

"May I ask what it is Professor?" She asked politely, diverting her attention to the tiny Professor. "That is, if I am not being rude."

Flitwick nodded, smoothing the crumples and creases out of it. "You might as well ask my dear, as it does concern you, in fact." His smile fell slightly as he regarded his favourite student. "This is a letter Miss Malfoy. A letter concerning you, and…" He looked around wearily. "Your current education. As you may know, the Ministry have recently made it a policy for all teachers currently here at Hogwarts to run any queries past the Minister."

Selene was taken aback at this. Since when? "Professor, since when was this the common policy?"

"For around three months Miss Malfoy." Flitwick nodded. "But anyway-"

"Isn't that the same time as the Anti-Werewolf legislation came in?" She pointed out, fiddling with the sleeve of her robes carefully. "The one that prevented them from holding jobs that enabled them to be around normal wizards and witches daily?"

"At least some of my Ravenclaws keep up with the times." Professor Flitwick said with a smile, but his voice was cold. "You are correct, in fact Miss Malfoy. I can't understand that woman's thinking sometimes…"

Choosing not to ask or comment, Selene continued to fiddle with her robes, not meeting Flitwick's eyes, instead concentrating on the shuffling of paper and the slight clearings of his throat. Then he folded out the creases in the paper again, clearing his throat for one last, definite time. "But anyway. I applied for permission to tutor you Miss Malfoy." Selene's head snapped up. "Yes, you needn't look so surprised. As much as I know you try to deny it, you have an extraordinary aptitude for my subject. I have only had one other student like you. Unfortunately…"

Professor Flitwick stooped here, brushing tears out of his eyes. "That is neither here nor there my dear. No, I called you here to let you know of the outcome."

Hopping off the pile of cushions, the tiny Charms Professor scurried over to his overflowing bookshelf, taking a book from one of the lower shelves. He brushed some of the dust off it, blowing away the must that had collected over time, and perched himself atop his cushions again, cradling the old book tenderly between two hands.

It had a few mildew spots on the front cover, which was emblazoned with bronze lettering that had a slightly medieval feel over a faded red binding. The careful way Professor Flitwick handled it told Selene all she needed to know, it was old and it was his.

"I've had this since I was young." He explained, confirming her suspicions. "My father gave it to me, in fact, shortly after I started Hogwarts myself. There you go." He handed Selene the book, brushing another speck of dust off it. "Take a look."

"_The Ancient Art of Charmwork_." Selene read, tracing the calligraphic font on the _cover. She carefully opened the book, reading the front inscription with interest. It had belonged to lots of owners, the names stretching down the side of the dedication page, ending with the name "Filius Flitwick, aged 11." The pages were almost as battered as the outside, crumpled slightly in places, covered in spots of dampness and having that musty smell that almost always seemed to linger in the bookshop in Hogsmede. Someone had drawn little characters that seemed to be vanquishing Dragons and Trolls around the page numbers, each time a different way. _

_The first chapter was entitled "The History of Charms". Selene skimmed the_ page in interest, before carefully closing the book again and handing it back to her Head of House. "That's amazing Professor! Is this the book you learnt from then?"

Flitwick opened the front cover again and smiled down at his eleven year-old handwriting. "As a matter of fact it was. But I have no more to learn from this my dear."

He produced a quill pen from the top drawer of his desk, dipped it in some ink and turned the dedication page, along with the long list of names, towards Selene. Handing her the quill pen with an encouraging smile, he nodded. "I have no more to learn from this book Miss Malfoy. You, however, do. You have a lot to learn, and I think with the correct training you could become exceptional. So, that book is yours now, until you pass it on to someone you deem worthy. Write your name in, and age."

Selene's eyes widened, but she inked in "Selene Malfoy, aged 16" almost gingerly, but carefully. As soon as she did, the book glowed a bright gold colour and the ink dried into the page. When she brushed her forefinger over the words, they didn't smudge. Professor Flitwick smiled nostalgically.

"That book will serve you well. It has for me. And it will for whomever you pass it on to. Now, if you meet me here next… Tuesday? At eight. We'll begin then."

Closing the book for her, Flitwick dropped the tome into Selene's hands before hopping off his cushions again and strolling over the door, leaving her lost for words. "I assure you I am most serious Selene. You are the most capable student I have seen for almost sixteen years. Now, I ask you to learn from that book like so many have before and come to this office next Tuesday. You have amazing talent and see a little of myself in you. It would be my pleasure to tutor you through the little time you have left here at Hogwarts."

"Thank you Professor." Selene smiled down at the huge book in her hands and walked out of the door, hardly daring to relive the conversation. "I… I will."

Giving her a small, rewarding smile, Professor Flitwick closed the door to his office quietly, leaving Selene standing in the corridor outside clutching _The Ancient Art of Charmwork _and blinking at the door.

There was no one else around as she slipped the heavy book into her bag, feeling the extra weight press down on her shoulder slightly. The silence was calming. No sooner had the fallout from the Second Task drifted its attention away from Selene, people began to become aware of her for other reasons. Gryffindors she had never seen or met before whispered to each other when they passed her in the halls, some even going as far as to wolf-whistle when they saw her. He'd wasted next to no time.

_Dear Diary,_

_ Right, here goes. I'm _in _love with Fred Weasley._

_ Shocker, right? I've been so busy, I haven't even had time to write this. To cut a long story short, he kissed me, twice, and now… I don't really know what. It's confusing as the Holy Hippogriffs. _

_ But, on a slightly less strange note, I've finally formally been introduced to Ginny Weasley. She's amazing, not a girly girl like many her age are, but tough as nails and hilariously blunt. Probably comes with having six brothers (how can she survive? I have trouble with just the one)._

_ I just wish that it was under less embarrassing circumstances. I wanted to curl up and die. Seriously, what thirteen year old goes up to her older brother's kind-of girlfriend and mentions that she's just "snogged dearest Freddie senseless"? Not me at thirteen, that's for bloody sure. Wow._

_ Kind-of girlfriend. I doubt anyone else has ever described themselves as a kind-of girlfriend. Ever. I am different; I don't have any social skills. I am probably the only person to ever get a nosebleed from running into a door. And now I have an almost-boyfriend who I am somehow irrevocably in love with. _

"Selene!" Selene looked around to see Fred walking down the corridor towards her with a huge grin on his face. "I was looking for you. Do you want to go to Hogsmede with me?"

"Sure." Selene smiled back at her almost-boyfriend.

"Great!" Fred grabbed her arm and begun to tow her along the corridor towards the stairs. "George is busy up to something or other, to be honest I don't have the faintest idea where Lee is and the girls are doing some boring gossipy stuff that apparently I'm not allowed to join because I'm not a girl. Not that you're last on my list or anything, but I just really wanted to help Lee find out if Alicia really wears pink pyjamas."

"Wait, now?" She looked around wildly. "It's eight-thirty at night Fred, and we should really be in our common rooms."

"Of course now!" Fred slowed to a walking pace so Selene could keep up. "Don't tell me you've never sneaked out of Hogwarts before? Ever? There are so many different secret passageways that reach out of the school, and you've never once tried to sneak out?"

"I thought only Filch knew about the passageways." Biting her lip, Selene sneaked a glance at the red head beside her. "Evidently not."

"Ah ha!" Fred grinned, running a hand through his hair. "All with a little help from Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs love. That's all I'm saying."

With a roguish wink, he sped up his pace slightly, Selene having to jog lightly to keep up, until they were running along the corridor. Fred slipped his hand into hers and guided her to the stairs, leading her to the floor below and finally slowing to a stop at the statue of the one-eyed witch.

"Watch carefully, love." He said after they had regained their breath back. "You never know when Filch might be on your trail and you need to make a hasty getaway."

"Why would I need to run from Filch in the first place?" Selene asked, looking from Fred to the statue weirdly. "I'm a Prefect, normally people run from me."

If it was possible (which it couldn't be) Fred's grin grew even more bright. "All part of being the girlfriend of a master prankster. You can't be inducted into the Weasley Twin's cult without pranking Filch at least once."

"Cult?" Selene wondered where his sense of sanity was, if he'd ever had one. "You have a cult?"

Shushing her with a finger to her lips, Fred took his wand out of his pocket and tapped the hump of the witch. "_Dissendium._" He said audibly, and the statue creaked open, leaving a black gaping hole where it has previously been. "Come on then."

Selene stepped into the hole created by the statue and immediately lost her footing, slipping down the slope that led to the base of the passage and landing on her front, face-planting the floor. She pushed herself up on her elbows, pushing her hair out of her eyes.

Fred laughed and made a much more graceful entrance, offering his hand to Selene who gratefully accepted it. "Sorry, I should've told you about that. That happens to everyone; in fact I think George bumped into the wall."

"Are there any more…" Selene searched for the right word. "Slopes I should know about?"

"Nah." Shaking his head and chuckling loudly, Fred began to move along the passageway, checking behind him every so often to make sure Selene was there. "You can take my word for it, prankster's honour."

The passageway was long and straight, quite boring in retrospect but rendered difficult by the absence of any light. "_Lumos._" Selene said, as a glowing blue light popped up at the end of her wand. Fred looked around in surprise for the source, but seeing Selene's wand he relaxed.

"So." He began, as they began to climb a little hill. "What's your middle name?"

"Why?" Selene asked, ducking a jutting piece of rock as they climbed higher.

"So when I need to, I don't have to say 'Selene something Malfoy!' or 'Selene whatever Malfoy'. " He explained, not looking behind him. "Oooh, actually, can I guess? It took me three weeks to guess Angelina's middle name, in the end I just owled her cousin."

"Okay, you can guess." Selene bit her lip again as she almost slipped over. "But it's quite easy really."

"Selene… Celestia?" Fred asked, glancing back to see an incredulous expression on Selene's face. "You're right, that was quite a stupid guess. Selene… Smartarse?"

Frowning slightly, Selene shook her head. "If that's my name, is yours Fred the Annoying or Fred the Idiotic?"

"I quite like Fred the Enigmatic actually." He revealed, stopping in the middle of the passageway as if to think. "Yes. Call me Freddie the Enigmatic."

"Quite a big word for such a slacker _Freddie_." Selene teased, unconsciously moving closer to him as she did. "Come on, if you're not going to be sensible I'll tell you. I'm Selene Narcissa Malfoy."

"Selene Narcissa Malfoy." Fred said, letting the name roll out slowly. "I like it. Sounds… mystical. Better than Frederick Gideon Weasley, anyway."

"Frederick?" Selene allowed herself a little smile. "Gideon? Wow, and I thought my name was bad."

"Don't call me Frederick." He growled. "No one ever calls me that, except Mum when I've done something really bad."

"Yes Freddie." Selene grinned, watching Fred's expression morph into one of exasperation as she said it. "What? Don't like that one either? Wow, and I thought Draco had a problem with his name."

"Nah, you can call me Freddie if you want." Fred moved closer to her so their noses were touching, but barely. "But what about what I asked you to call me before? I still think love sounds pretty good."

"Isn't that what you call me?" Selene was so close to him she could smell vanilla and gunpowder.

"Ravenclaws." Fred rolled his eyes. "Love, you are too stubborn for your own good. Come on, you can't resist this pranking god when he's in action. You can fool me with your pretty face, but you can't get away from this."

"What are you going to do? Prank me to death? Sorry, but I don't want 'Death by Ginger Prankster' engraved on my tombstone, and to be honest I can see you killing me any other way." Ducking around him to continue along the passageway, Selene felt her foot slip again on a puddle and she fell against the wall, hitting her head on the ceiling. "Okay, maybe I don't need you to kill me. I think I can do it myself." She groaned as Fred snickered. "But if I'm breaking about twenty-five million and one rules by doing this, then I'm seriously going to need to sort myself out."

"You don't need to!" Fred exclaimed dramatically, throwing his arm around Selene. "You, my dear, are taking one small step on the long, long road to recovery."

"Recovery?" Selene sighed. "I'm complete-"

Her head hit a trapdoor and Selene stopped in her tracks, looking at Fred in surprise. He rolled his eyes and stepped in front of her again, pushing the trapdoor open with one hand and peeking out to check if anyone was outside the trapdoor.

"All clear." He decided, opening the trapdoor fully with a satisfying thump on the stone floor of wherever they had come out at. "Come on out love."

Selene climbed out after him, startled somewhat by the bright light after the darkness of the passageway. After extinguishing the light emitting from her own wand, she looked around with a vague hope of discovering where they were. It only took a couple of seconds.

"Honeydukes?" Impressed despite herself, Selene smiled around at the cellar resonating with a pungent smell of Fizzing Whizzbees and Sugar Quills. "Wow."

"And here was me thinking I'd never be able to impress my lovely girlfriend." Fred smiled back at Selene, a smile that made her logical mind that was currently shrieking that they were breaking so many rules by being here, after hours too completely dissipate into the air. "You are a girl of many secrets Selene. How many things don't I know about you?"

Panic gripped Selene momentarily but she shrugged it off as soon at it had appeared. That was not for now, not for ever. It was completely unfounded anyway, the panic. It was in the past. "Quite a lot." She said, truthfully, turning around to see the trapdoor blending back into the stone floor. "What don't I know about you?"

"I can fling a gnome for 30 feet." Fred stated proudly. "I'm almost as good as Mum."

Selene looked above them quickly as the floorboards creaked. "The owners live above the shop, can't they hear us?"

Fred shrugged. "Deaf as a doorpost they are. Don't worry about it, I won't get your little prefect head into detention yet love, I'm saving that for another time."

"I'm sure I can't wait." Selene said, trying to sound sarcastic but obviously failing as a huge grin spread over Fred's face. "I wasn't… oh well."

Soon they were outside in the cool night air, in the empty high street. "What's the point of breaking into Hogsmede if nothing is open?" Selene asked, looking around at the closed up storefronts. "You and George must do this all the time, so what do you do?"

"Jump out at people mostly." Seeing the worried look on Selene's face, Fred hastily added; "Don't worry, no one recognises us. It's too dark."

Slightly less worried but still nervous, Selene allowed herself to be led down the High Street towards Zonkos. Fred was right, it was too dark for anyone to be able to even see them and no one was around at this time of night anyway. It was a full moon, and as Selene looked up at the sky her thoughts lingered on Professor Lupin, their Defence against the Dark Arts teacher last year, who had turned out to be a werewolf. Her father was one of the parents who had campaigned to have him sacked. It was a shame; Professor Lupin was easily the best teacher they'd had in the subject even with Professor Moody in the mix.

"What's on your mind?" Fred asked her, cocking his head to one side as he regarded the girl on his left.

"Professor Lupin." Selene said truthfully, pointing up at the full moon. "I wish he was still here this year. Quirrel was terrible, Lockhart was an all-out arsehole, and Moody… to be honest he scares me slightly. But Professor Lupin was an amazing teacher, and it was down to him I actually passed my OWL."

"Didn't you get an O though?" Fred asked her curiously.

Selene shook her head. "An E. It would've been an O, but I had a bit of a problem with the Boggart." She admitted, shivering at the thought.

Before Fred could answer, a big, black dog bounded out of the alleyway, almost knocking Selene over. It stopped in front of them, looking up at them with big grey eyes and cocking its head to one side much like Fred had done, almost if it was looking at them like he recognised them.

Something was off about that dog. Selene squeezed her eyes tight shut and open them again, looking into the dog's grey eyes intently. They didn't look feral or dog-like; they were distinctly human eyes, in a dog. And the way the dog was looking between Selene and Fred and their intertwined fingers, it almost looked _proud_.

Then, as quickly as the dog had appeared, it ran off back down the alleyway. One glance at Fred told Selene that he was just as confused as she was.

"I could have sworn that…" His brow furrowed slightly. "I thought… no, it doesn't matter. Come on, I still want to show you something."

"What?" Selene asked, forgetting about the dog-that-wasn't-a-dog. "You wanted to show me something?"

"You sound like a broken record." Fred grinned at her, squeezing her hand. "Come on love."

He turned down a road Selene had never been down before, leading further away from the high street and closer towards the housing area of Hogsmede. One of the many perks of living in an entirely wizarding area was the fact that you could 'customise' your house. Each house was painted a luridly bright colour, glow-in-the-dark orange, green, fluorescent yellow, every shade of red under the sun.

"Get a move on." Fred rolled his eyes at Selene's fascination with the houses. "If you think they're strange, you should see my house. Completely barmy, held up by magic. Not to mention the gnomes in the back garden and the ghoul in the attic."

He pulled her down a narrow street, away from the bright houses and into the dark. They walked in silence for a while, until Fred stopped and pointed out an old rusted sign swinging in the breeze.

Selene squinted in the dark to try to see it. "_Buntel's Antique Book Shop…" _She read out. "Antique books?"

"I know!" Fred grinned proudly up at the sign. "Took me ages to find. That's kind of the point really, no one really knows about this little beauty, not even the Professors. It's closed at the moment; everything is, but Cho seems pretty annoying so if you ever needed a little space…?"

"I love you." Selene said decisively, transferring her gaze to Fred. "You are officially my favourite person ever. I absolutely love you."

"I would hope so, since you are dating me, love." He pointed out.

"Am I dating you?" Selene asked, quickly becoming confused. "Am I?"

"Yes. We kissed, I love you, you love me, I think we're dating." Fred face-palmed as Selene's expression still came up slightly confused. "Alright then. Selene Narcissa Malfoy. Will you go out with me?"

"Okay." Selene said, feeling slightly foolish. "Um… sorry, you know? I'm not very good at all of this… dating stuff."

"It's fine." Fred shrugged off. "Practice makes perfect, that's what everyone always says."

Selene giggled at the expression on his face, he looked like a penguin had just eaten his lunch: pleasantly surprised. "We can't stay out here all night; Cho kills me and buries me under Ravenclaw tower just for daring to step out of the common room after curfew. If she realises I wasn't even in school she'll probably murder me, bring me back just to murder me again and then plant the evidence on Zabini."

"I guess." Fred groaned, wrapping his arm around Selene's waist. "Why do you have to have such annoying friends?"

She chose not to answer that and instead focused on the warm feeling affect he had on her. Neither of them spoke. It wasn't an awkward silence, for which Selene was devoutly grateful; it was treading the fine line between comfortable and comforting.

A loud barking sound echoed out of the darkness and Selene whipped round, stumbling slightly as she did. The big, black dog from earlier was behind them, directly behind them.

"Is that the dog from earlier?" Fred asked aloud. "The one that ran out in front of us?"

The dog woofed in agreement, and Selene's eyes widened. Did he just… agree with Fred? Could he understand them, everything they were saying? And how long had the dog been there?

It still looked almost human if you looked into its grey eyes, and the proud look that Selene had noticed was still there, in full force. She'd never seen this dog before today, dogs were Muggle pets anyway, you wouldn't catch one anywhere near the Malfoy estate, but it still sparked recognition inside her. Not strong recognition, but the smallest variant, déjà vu if you liked.

It woofed again, and nodded before running back into the shadows again. Fred instinctively dropped his arm from around Selene's waist, but then realising what he'd unconsciously done quickly wrapped it around her shoulders instead. "Come on, we need to get back." Fred didn't sound like the dog had unsettled him. "It's just a dog."

"Okay." Selene agreed, half of her thoughts still with the dog. "Sorry, it just felt familiar somehow."

It was past ten when they arrived back at the passageway again, Selene being painstakingly careful not to slip like she had done previously.

"What do you have against Zabini?" Fred asked her as they were safely walking back towards the castle again. "Apart from him being in Slytherin, I mean."

It was such a tiny, trivial thing that Selene smiled, despite her unsettling thoughts. "Oh, he's been chasing me since I met him. He's under the impression that I actually like him and I'm simply playing hard-to-get. I don't even get a break from him over the holidays; he's over at the Manor every other day."

"I'll prank him." Fred decided on a whim. "I take it he knows nothing about anything you get up to? This will be fun…"

Selene rolled her eyes. "The day he leaves me alone will be the day I prank McGonagall."

"I'm going to hold you to that little statement." Warned Fred, already planning how to get Zabini off her back.

**That was really fun to write.**

**I'm not kidding though, I loved that chapter, simply because it's awesome.**

**Anyway, I'd love your feedback, so read and review!**

**Can I just say, I'm off to Germany next Thursday so if this is the last chapter I get done before then, I won't be around until two Wednesday's time. Reviews in this increment of space and time would be like gold dust.**

**I love you all (not in that way… friends.)**

**Eleanor xxx**


	25. Chapter 24: I'll Be Your Gryffindor

**I'm sorry I've been away for so long; Germany was bloody amazing, hot, awesome etc. I hope this chapter is worth the wait**

**Thanks to Kacey for her review, it was just a school trip and also to BellatrixD – thanks for the reviews anyway, even if they are a tad irregular! Guest, thanks. That is all I have to say. And The souless ones, I await your verdict! Skipping back, also to cheeseandoreosHP for her lovely review on chapter 15, that is the best praise I could get.**

**Also, I have passed 10k views! Thank you all!**

**I don't own Harry Potter.**

Chapter 24: I'll Be Your Gryffindor

_Mother hardly ever mentioned him. My cousin, that's all I know of him._

_ And now… I don't know. I never knew, and now I never will. I think of him now, looking up at the moon. The moon, that large celestial object that I am named after. Selene, goddess of the moon. It's only when I can see the moon that I can relax._

_ I'll be back at school in a matter of weeks, away from 'home'. Always in inverted commas that. Away from the dust that seems to gather in our hallways now Dobby has escaped._

_ Two tears flop down my cheeks as I think of the house elf. I am pleased; my family routinely abused him even when he had done right. Made him shut his fingers in the oven, iron his ears out, set his head on fire… all to see him break. But he didn't, and as much as I know I shouldn't I miss him more than anyone could have thought possible._

_ He was my only friend, from when I was a toddler to when I left for Beauxbatons. I like to think I never pushed him aside, but that is a lie. I did, and now he's gone I will never be able to remedy that._

_ Father's anger is even more terrible these days. I don't know why, but something has gone wrong and he is still reeling from the blow Dumbledore shot him. The blow Harry Potter gave him. He is no longer as important, but he holds more power in his pinkie than the rest do put together. _

_ Mother won't even look at me or Draco. Normally I would accept this as normality and move on, but for her to place Draco aside is abnormal. He is the perfect child, even though I am the clever one. He is the loved one, although I try so hard. And I love him unconditionally, through his tantrums and spoilt brat fits. Because I know that underneath his exterior, he is as innocent as everyone else, as much as he tries to hide it._

_ Our money might have brought him his nature, our status in society his arrogance, but I know that those things have not changed me as much. The only thing they have successfully done is build up my walls between reality and my memories. And right now, what I need to remember will not come to me._

_ Grey eyes and black hair. I can only remember one person with grey eyes and black hair, and it is not the person I am searching for. I don't want to remember that person, it hurts too much. I cried all night when I heard. I knew he understood me. _

"Perfect!" Professor Flitwick squeaked as Selene produced a perfect Total Shield Charm. "You really have studied that book well Miss Malfoy, now if you'll look here…"

The old tome lay open in the middle of his desk, which was cleared of all clutter ready for her extra lessons. Selene pored over the book next to her Professor, smiling to herself. That charm had taken her a whole night to perfect, and praise just made the achievements seem more precious to her.

"If you could try the next step up – a Designated Shield Charm – for next Tuesday, I think that should sufficiently challenge you, If you have any qualms please do not hesitate to contact me. I'll see you at around 10 am; you have a free lesson then, don't you?"

Selene walked out of his office with a sight smile on her face, sliding the book back into its gap between her Arithmancy book and its Ancient Runes counterpart. Charms was such an interesting subject, there were so many disciplines you could study and its history and its roots…

"Did you have another private lesson?" Hermione asked her, catching up with Selene on their way down to the Great Hall. To anyone else they might have judged Hermione as mightily jealous about Selene's extra lessons, but she was in fact extremely impressed. "So you perfected that Total Shield Charm then?"

Nodding, Selene answered; "Just about. I've got a Designated Shield Charm next."

"Oooh!" Hermione gasped. "They're extremely hard; I've only ever read about them! If you manage that one…"

"I know." Selene laughed. "I'm not amazing Hermione, I just... try hard. Anyway, How's Harry getting on with his spells ready for the Third Task?"

"Quite good, actually, we've completed the Summoning Charm; obviously, I think I might teach him the Banishing Charm too, just in case."

"What about the Point Me Charm?" Selene suggested. "Um… it works a bit like a Muggle thing called a company or something."

"Compass." Hermione corrected gently. "It's called a compass. That does sound good, how do you do it?"

"Ladies, ladies, save the nerd talk for the lessons, alright?" Lee Jordan overheard them talking about spells. "We don't want my fabulousness tarnished by your geekiness, now, do we?"

Hermione and Selene shared an exasperated look, eventually deciding to just continue on to the hall like nothing had happened. Lee ran up alongside them, apparently determined to stop them talking about work, at least for a little while.

"Now, let's move on to more socially acceptable topics now, should we? What do normal girls talk about anyway?"

Hermione looked at Lee distrustfully. "Boys." She summed up in one word.

Lee's face wrinkled and he pulled a face. "Thank Godric you two aren't normal then." He said, relieved, before realising what he'd just said.

"Thanks Lee." Selene said drily, patting him on the shoulder. "And you wonder why no girl will ever date you."

They had reached the Great Hall by this point, and Selene instinctively made for the Ravenclaw table, before being casually moved by Hermione. "Come on, sit with us." She invited. "Everyone else does it. No one will really care. Come on."

So Selene was sat down next to Hermione and a boy with slightly singed eyebrows that she recognised as Seamus Finnegan. Seamus shook her hand warmly, with a little grin. "You're that Malfoy chick, aren't you?" He asked in a thick Irish accent. "Pleased to meet you, the name's Seamus, Seamus Finnegan."

"Selene." Selene introduced.

"Harry, Selene knows a spell that might help you." Hermione cut in, talking to Harry, who was seated across from her. Harry's glum expression perked up when he saw the Ravenclaw.

"You do? Which one?" He asked eagerly, ignoring his food for the meantime.

"It's called the Point Me Charm." Explained Selene. "The incantation is simply 'Point Me' with your wand lying flat in the palm of your hand."

Hermione nodded, producing a piece of parchment and a quill from her pocket. She quickly noted all of this down, before finishing with a flourish and stowing them back in her robes. "Great, now I was thinking-"

She was cut off by Fred miraculously appearing and motioning for Seamus to budge up slightly. Hermione buried her head in her hands, obviously giving up any hope for sensibleness at this moment in time.

"Hello love." He pecked Selene on the cheek before looking at Hermione. "Why so glum 'Mione? Has your crazy cat eaten any more of Ron's multitude of mice?"

"He's not crazy!" Hermione snapped. "He's just… touchy. And Ron doesn't have a mouse any more, and Pigwidgeon's the mad one."

"Pigwidgeon?" Selene raised an eyebrow.

"Ginny." Ron didn't look up, just pointed his knife at where his sister was sitting with her friends. "She has terrible naming skills. I feel sorry for her kids; she'll probably call one Elvendork Englebreath or something."

Everyone laughed at the name, and Ron went back to his sandwiches with renewed vigour. Hermione rolled her eyes then looked up at the enchanted ceiling in surprise.

"Is that an owl?" She asked, pointing up at where a grey owl was swooping around. "They normally come at breakfast, don't they?"

The owl swooped down to the Gryffindor table, and Selene's eyes widened. "Apophis?" She asked. She could feel the gazes of everyone on her. "Um… my family's owl. I don't know why he'd be here though, I've got Cress and Draco's got Rudy."

The owl didn't stop, just dropped at letter in front of Selene before flying off into the ceiling again. Most were too focused on the owl to notice the recipient or even the letter, but Ron looked up from his plate and gaped at what the owl had given Selene. Hermione was next to snap out of it, picking up the red envelope gingerly.

"Open it." Hermione passed it to Selene quickly. "It's a million times worse if you don't."

"Have they sent you a Howler?" Fred asked, craning forward to see. "What have you done t-"

The rest of his sentence was drowned out as the envelope burst into flames and Ron jumped backwards. Selene, who was still holding the letter, dropped it quickly, and it landed on the Gryffindor table milliseconds before a loud voice boomed from it.

"THE THINGS I HAVE HEARD! I CANNOT BELIEVE YOUR AUDICITY! AFTER ALL THE CHANCES WE HAVE GIVEN YOU, AFTER EVERYTHING WE HAVE GIVEN YOU, EVERYTHING YOU COULD EVER WANT, AND YOU THROW IT BACK IN OUR FACES! WE FORGAVE YOU THE FIRST TIME, WE FORGAVE YOU WHEN YOU DISAPPOINTED US, WHEN YOU CHOSE TO MAKE FRIENDS WHO WERE BENEATH YOU, BUT THIS IS TOO FAR. DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT IS HAPPENING AT THIS VERY MOMENT? DO YOU EVEN CARE? WHAT IS HAPPENING WILL AFFECT ALL OF US, AND YOU'RE TOO BUSY OFF WITH YOUR PATHETIC GRYFFINDOR FRIENDS TO CARE. YOUR BROTHER HAS TOLD US EVERYTHING, AND YOU ARE TREADING A VERY FINE LINE GIRL, YOU ARE ON THE BRINK OF IT. IF WE HEAR ONCE MORE THAT YOU ARE CONSORTING WITH MUDBLOODS AND BLOOD TRAITORS ALIKE, THEN YOU CAN CONSIDER YOURSELF A MALFOY ONLY BY NAME!"

The letter exploded into a million tiny fragments, and the Great Hall was in a shocked silence. Everyone had heard every single word of the Howler, and were now staring at the unfortunate recipient.

Selene felt light-headed, staring down at the faintest shadow of ash that outlined where the letter had fallen. She wished the ground would open up and just swallow her, anywhere was better than here. She couldn't meet anyone's gaze.

The look on George's face would have terrified even the bravest Gryffindor. He looked almost mutinous as he gritted his teeth and glowered at Draco over at the Slytherin table. Selene wanted to stop him, he wasn't worth it and it would just make things worse for her, but she couldn't move. Fred wordlessly placed a hand on her shoulder, shocking Selene out of her petrified state.

If she was braver, less scared, then she would have made a joke about how her father would have no voice after yelling all of that at her. But she was never brave; she was just scared, and nervous and shy. She could wish for a proper family, not a father that would yell verbal abuse at her and think nothing of it, and a mother that saw her as a way to uphold the Malfoy's pureblood status. But you can't choose your family.

She ran out of the Great Hall, not looking back, just wanting a way out of the deafening silence and the probing stares. There were only so many times that you could pretend that everything was okay, that everything wasn't falling apart, and the limit had just been crossed.

The air was pleasantly warm, but not hot, and the sun was high in the sky, Selene wished it was night, then she could see the moon and feel less alone. Ever since she was a tiny girl the moon had always seemed like a friend, and that nothing bad could happen when she could see it. That wasn't true of course; the moonlight shining over that body had proved her wrong.

And there was next to no point complaining about it, even if she gave it all up in this very spot, then she would still love him. Feelings aren't easy to manipulate, and every time she saw him she would feel a pang inside of her. She could pretend, but she couldn't actually stop loving him.

She loved his slightly crooked smile, and his chocolate-brown eyes, and his promise that he was probably going to make her prank Professor McGonagall in the near future, and the way he somehow got her to sneak out of school after curfew. And though she'd never admit it, his hair was amazing. She'd never admit it to Fred anyway; his ego was far too big as it was.

But that was beside the point.

"Selene?" Someone was calling. Selene didn't look up; she didn't really want to face him just yet. She had to keep so much from him, and for good reason. If he realised everything that was so fundamentally wrong with her, then he might not want to love her anymore. She'd fallen for him so quickly and so easily, and now she couldn't see life without him. It was like the beginning of a sick fairytale.

"Selene?" Fred called again, spotting her by the lake. "Selene." He repeated, slightly quieter.

"Hey." Selene answered as he sat down beside her. She didn't meet his eyes, she just kept on looking over the lake and to the hills beyond.

"George is busy getting told off by Professor McGonagall." He stated. Selene didn't look around at him. "He punched him. Your brother, I mean. George punched Malfoy."

Again, she didn't react, fiddling with her sleeve and biting her lip. "Draco's not worth it." She protested; looking straight forward with all the force she could muster. "It won't make him stop and he'll just tell Father that a Weasley punched him."

"You know I love you, right?" Fred asked, finally accepting that Selene wasn't going to look at him. "I know you're not telling me much at all, but I want you know that it won't change a thing between us. Everyone keeps secrets, even me and George, and it's no big deal.'

Feeling a tear fall down her cheek, Selene took a deep breath and curled her legs up to her body, resting her head on top. She closed her eyes. "I'm just scared." She admitted. "I'm no Gryffindor, I don't know the first thing about bravery, it's just me trying to help people and forcing myself to say and do things."

"You are brave."

Those three words could be interpreted so many different ways, but Selene just shook her head. "No, I'm not. If I was brave I could confront Draco myself, not have others do it for me. If I was brave I wouldn't be out here, I'd be inside getting over it. I'm a Ravenclaw, not a Gryffindor. I'm smart, not brave."

"I'll be your Gryffindor." Fred said, taking Selene's hand. "If you're not brave then, I can be brave for you. And you can do my homework."

Selene gave a strangled sob before throwing her arms around Fred, clutching him desperately. "Typical… Gryffindor…" She sobbed into his shoulder. "Always… trying… to get… out of work…"

Fred chuckled quietly, hugging her to him. "Calm down love, its okay. George has already done the physical damage, and I know Hermione isn't very happy either. It'll all be alright."

They sat there for a number of minutes, arms around each other like if they let go the other might leave. The sun went behind a cloud and the bright sunlight seemed diminished somewhat in the resulting shadow.

"Hi." Said a very bemused voice behind them, and Fred looked around to see George, a huge grin on his face. "Have you progressed to hugging now? Wow, kids these days grow up fast."

Fred's look would have made a lesser man shrivel up and die, but George didn't seem fazed. Selene flicked her eyes upwards from Fred's shoulder and stifled a little shriek, catapulting away from him and hoping that her hair wasn't giving George the wrong idea.

"I have to say Selene." George said evilly, a little twinkle in his brown eyes. "Punching your dear brother was a lot of fun. Can I do it again sometime?"

His expression made Selene giggle despite herself. "No, sorry." She apologised.

There was an almost angry look on George's face now and Selene self-consciously scrambled backwards when he started to advance towards her. "No, okay, you can! It's okay!" She squeaked.

"She fell for it." George deadpanned, before cracking a grin. "You plonker. You actually fell for that?"

Selene realised, and she stood up, feeling her face turn read when she realised she'd been tricked. "I hate you." She whined. "And no, you can't punch him again. Where did you punch him anyway?"

"Jaw." George sounded very pleased with himself. "Broke his pretty face too; I've got detention until the end of the year but it's definitely worth it."

"You didn't need to." Selene protested, biting her lip.

"Yes I did!" George countered, flinging an arm carelessly around her shoulders. "Mum's going to want to meet you now I've written to her explaining that Freddie has a girlfriend-"

"You told Mum?" Fred's eyebrows shot into his hairline. "I could kill you right now."

"-Anyway." George continued. "That is for another time, and as I was saying, now Mum knows she's going to want to meet you. And she's going to love you – 'You'll be such a good influence on him!'." George mimicked a high pitched voice. "Urgh, actually, really? Fred, remind me why you had to fall in love with an ickle Prefect?"

"I could kill you right now." Fred repeated ominously. "And we're the ones influencing her; and what better day to do it then April 1st?"

Selene looked from George to Fred as they began to silently exchange information. "Guys?" She asked, slightly freaked out. "What's so special about April 1st?"

Fred looked at her, aghast. "What's so special about that date? It's only the day to-"

"-prank-" George added.

"-annoy-" Fred explained.

"-and joke." George finished. "And not to mention-"

"-it's our birthday." They completed in tandem. Selene snorted.

"That's kind of a coincidence isn't it?" She asked. "You two, biggest pranksters in the history of pranking, born on the biggest day for pranking?"

"She's catching on." George said to Fred. "I'm starting to think she isn't as bad as I thought she was."

"Hey." Selene frowned. The twins chuckled, and Fred slipped his arm around the shoulder not currently occupied by George's arm. Together they began to walk her towards the castle, ignoring her protests. "Guys, I don't want to go back yet, people are just going to stare at me."

Fred rolled his eyes. "Then I'll punch them. Remember, I'm your Gryffindor. I do all the fighting, you do all the homework, and we share the snogging."

George face-palmed. He didn't say anything; he just wordlessly pretended to vomit into a nearby bush. "If you want my help dear brother, then you need to stop flirting with Selene here right under my nose."

Moving his arm from her shoulder to her waist, Fred pecked Selene's cheek and George rolled his eyes. "No can do Georgie."

The amount of people that turned to look at the trio as they re-entered the Great Hall was staggering, and Selene felt compelled to leave again, but between them the twins managed to guide her back to the Gryffindor table.

"Are you okay?" To Selene's surprise, it was Harry that spoke first. "Malfoy shouldn't have told your parents, it's your choice to tell them or not, not his."

"I'm fine thanks Harry." Selene lied, biting her lip. "I'd have to tell them anyway, and it'd probably be better anyway for Draco to tell them, not me."

"So…" Hermione began gingerly. "Is that it then?"

Selene shook her head. "No, they're going to want me back over summer, try and b-get some sense into me. I've got one last chance, that's what I gathered from that Howler. If I don't retract back to just my Ravenclaw friends, then…" She didn't continue her sentence. Lily spoke up from nearby.

"It's decided." She announced suddenly. "You're coming to Hogsmede with me next weekend, and you're going to meet my sister Dora, your other cousin. Mum will want to meet you too, no doubt about it, and so will Dad. They aren't all psyco in our family Selene. Come on, you know you want to."

"Thank you Lily." Selene said gratefully. "I'd love to meet Aunty Dromeda."

"And I know Mum and Dad would love to meet you too." Hermione cut in. "They are extremely interested in the Wizarding World, and it'll be nice for them to meet someone who has completely been submerged in it their whole life. And I know you're interested in the Muggle world too."

"And as I was saying, Mum will want to meet you." George added. "Our family is actually nice, unless you count Aunt Muriel which none of us do. She's a right bitch, never happy."

"You can have my aunt and uncle if you want." Harry groaned. "And my cousin Dudley. Seriously, just give me the word and they're yours."

"I'm okay." Selene grinned. "They can't be that bad. At least they don't- anyway."

Only Hermione noticed her near slip-up, and shot Selene a curious glance. Selene didn't meet her eyes.

Fred kissed Selene's cheek again, and Harry blushed and his head in his lunch. "I love you." He whispered into her ear. "My Ravenclaw."

Selene could feel her face heating up at the comment, and the look Ron gave them was terrifying. What did they all think Fred just said to her? Damn it. Her face was much too easy to blush. Now everyone thought he'd just made some innuendo or something.

"You look cute when you blush." Fred whispered again. Selene shot him a look as she flushed again. Was he doing this on purpose? He was doing this on purpose.

"It's not funny…"

"Yes, it is." George interjected a devious grin on his face. "You are incredibly sweet together, you know."

Now it was Fred's turn to glare at his brother while Ron laughed. "Oh, and I happen to know what you feel towards a certain Gryffindor Chaser too. Do you want me to tell Lily? Then keep quiet like a good boy and don't complain when I flirt."

Ron took a sip of his pumpkin juice at this point and promptly spat it out all over Hermione, who gave him an exasperated look and muttered "_Scourgify_.".

"Is it me or does he look jealous?" Fred murmured to Selene again. "Anyway, I think it's just fun to aggravate you by making you blush. You blush an awful lot though love, are you entirely sure it's normal?"

There was a slight commotion over at the Slytherin table and the group all looked around. Draco, still cradling his jaw with one hand, was hastily slipping into his spot between Crabbe and Goyle, trying not to attract too much attention but evidently failing.

Professor McGonagall walked over towards the Gryffindor table, stopping so she could see the clustered people around Selene. "Mr Weasley, please refrain from attacking Mr Malfoy again."

"Yes Professor." George droned, catching Selene's eye and shooting her a wink. "You have to admit though, he deserved it."

A smile twitched at the corners of Professor McGonagall's mouth. "It is not your place to say such a thing Mr Weasley, however I believe detention for the rest of the year is a little harsh. A month." She looked around the group some more, her gaze resting on Selene. "Miss Malfoy, I know that I am not your Head of House, but Professor Flitwick always speaks most highly of you and your abilities. So, if you are ever in need of someone to confide in."

She left off here, nodding curtly at George and giving Selene a tight-lipped smile. Then McGonagall was striding off towards the top table. "Did she just let you off?" Hermione asked, sounding disgusted. "I can't believe you! First you punch someone in the jaw – yes, okay, he deserved it! – And now Professor McGonagall is shortening your sentence. If I were her, I'd give you detention for two years."

"Thank Godric Hermione isn't a Professor then." Fred said dramatically, pretending to wipe sweat off his forehead. "Phew, you had me worried there."

Selene laughed at Fred's over-dramatic expression and he grinned at her, running a hand through his hair slightly nervously. "Oh, for the love of Gryffindor you two, stop flirting!" George groaned, face-palming. "And this is why I try not to get involved with your love life Freddie; you always turn out sickly-sweet."


End file.
